NITB Issues EOI for 24,000 Smartphones, GoP Apps to Come Preinstalled on Every Device

NITB 24,000 smartphones procurement is now officially underway; Pakistan’s federal government is preparing to buy Android smartphones in one of the largest single-device purchases in recent public sector history, and it wants local manufacturers and assemblers to fill the order.

The National Information Technology Board (NITB) has issued a formal Expression of Interest (EOI) to locally authorised mobile device manufacturers and assemblers, initiating a market survey that will feed into budgetary estimates before any official procurement begins. The initiative is being conducted under the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT), a signal that this is not a routine departmental purchase but a centrally driven push with strategic intent behind it.

What the Government Is Looking For

The EOI outlines a precise and non-negotiable set of requirements. NITB is not shopping for variety; it wants uniformity at scale.

All 24,000 devices must be brand-new Android smartphones of the same make and model, fully approved by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), and ready to use out of the box. Each device must carry a minimum one-year official warranty with after-sales support available within Pakistan. Vendors must also provide indicative pricing inclusive of all applicable taxes, with delivery to Islamabad.

Device Requirements at a Glance

The Delivery Condition That Stands Out

Buried in the technical requirements is a condition that will immediately separate serious contenders from the rest: the delivery timeline is exceptionally tight.

Of the 24,000 units ordered, 12,000 must be delivered within 12 to 18 hours of the purchase order being issued. The remaining 12,000 units must follow within six days.

That first condition, half an order of 12,000 smartphones delivered within less than a day, is not a standard government procurement clause. It demands that vendors maintain significant ready stock at all times, with immediate logistics capability to move thousands of devices to Islamabad on near-instant notice.

For most importers or distributors, that timeline would be unworkable. For locally authorised assemblers with warehousing infrastructure already in place, it is demanding but potentially achievable, which is precisely why the EOI is targeted exclusively at local manufacturers and assemblers rather than the broader market.

Delivery Timeline

GoP Apps, Preinstalled Before Packaging

One of the more revealing requirements in the EOI is the mandate for government application preinstallation.

Every device must have Government of Pakistan (GoP) applications preinstalled before it is packaged and delivered. This is not an afterthought; it suggests the devices are being procured for deployment to government employees or for a specific public-facing programme where standardised software access is essential from day one.

The nature of those GoP applications has not been specified in the EOI. However, the preinstallation requirement indicates that NITB is not simply buying hardware; it is deploying a standardised digital toolkit at scale, with the device and its software treated as a single integrated unit.

Who Can Apply And Who Cannot

The eligibility criteria are deliberately narrow. NITB has restricted participation to locally authorised manufacturers and assemblers holding valid Mobile Device Manufacturing (MDM) authorisation from the PTA.

Firms must demonstrate the operational capacity to meet the full volume requirement, maintain a verifiable local presence, and provide credible warranty and support infrastructure. Documentation requirements include SECP registration, National Tax Number (NTN), and Active Taxpayer List (ATL) status, standard compliance credentials that filter out informal or unregistered operators.

Importers, distributors, and retailers, regardless of scale, are not eligible. This is exclusively a local manufacturing and assembly play.

Eligibility Criteria

NITB has been explicit on one point: this EOI is not a tender, not a Request for Proposal, and carries no financial commitment at this stage. The stated objective is to evaluate market options, assess pricing, and identify technically suitable products before any formal procurement process is launched.

The Bigger Picture: Digital Deployment at Scale

The preinstallation of GoP applications points to something larger than a straightforward hardware purchase. It suggests a coordinated digital deployment, devices configured, loaded, and ready for use the moment they reach their destination.

Whether these phones are headed for government employees, a public welfare programme, or a specific institutional initiative remains unconfirmed. But the combination of volume, uniformity, tight delivery, and preloaded software paints a picture of a government that is not just buying phones; it is deploying a system.

The EOI deadline is March 27. The market’s response will determine whether that ambition has a credible supply chain behind it.

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