Achievements

Achievements 2022-23

  • Teledensity of Pakistan stands at 81.4% with 193.5 million total telecom subscriber base as of June 2023.
  • Broadband subscribers (mobile and fixed) have reached 127.6 million with 53.7% penetration.
  • Cellular mobile services are available to 90% of Pakistan’s population, while 3G / 4G signals extend to over 80% population.
  • Data usage (fixed and mobile) in FY 2023 reached 20,235 Petabytes, registering annual growth of 24.5%.
  • There are 54,415 cellular mobile cell sites across country. 93% of cell sites are 4G-enabled, with more undergoing upgrades.
  • PTA has resolved 98.6% of 180,602 telecom complaints received during FY 2023.
  • During FY 2023, the telecom sector revenues were PKR 850 billion (Provisional) and investments in telecom sector crossed USD 762 million (Provisional).
  • Telecom sector contributed Rs. 340 billion (Provisional) to the national exchequer during FY 2023 in terms of taxes, duties and license payments.
  • During FY 2023, PTA has blocked 75,393 URLs involved in unlawful activities.
  • 13.9 million handsets were manufactured locally during FY 2023 through PTA’s authorizations for local manufacturing.
  • Pakistan is connected with seven submarine cables and one land based OFC cable to access international internet bandwidth having total capacity of 13.3 Tbps [activated capacity 7.7 Tbps].
  • Pakistan has established 19 Cross Border Terrestrial Telecom Links with Neighboring Countries.
  • PTA has launched ‘Temporary Mobile Registration System’. This system is designed to facilitate overseas Pakistanis and foreign visitors to register and use their personal mobile phones for up to 120 days upon arrival, without having to incur any duties or taxes.
  • In December 2022, PTA introduced Multi Finger Biometric Verification System (MBVS) to combat the issuance of unauthorized SIMs.
  • During torrential monsoon rains and floods in August 2022, PTA and telecom operators ensured timely restoration of 3,386 sites which went down and ensured 100% backhaul fiber optic connectivity of damaged OFC network in Balochistan and Sindh.
  • PTA activated Ring-back Tone alerting for over 138.7 million mobile subscribers to adopt safety measures during monsoon and floods. 84.5 million informational SMSs and 155 million SMSs for 911 service availability in flood affected areas were disseminated.
  • PTA achieved notable strides in bolstering Cyber Security (CS) and as many as 89 CS advisories and 84 CS alerts were issued during FY 2023.
  • In February 2023, PTA launched its national Telecom Security Operations Center (nTSOC) and successfully achieved integration with 22 operators.
  • PTA blocked 120 Illegal Financial/Loan Apps and 8 Websites in collaboration with FAB and SECP.
  • PTA has blocked 758,113 International Mobile Equipment Identities (IMEIs) reported stolen. DIRBS has also identified and blocked 35.5 million non-compliant IMEIs, including 7.3 million duplicate or cloned IMEI numbers.
  • In order to improve services, PTA regularly conducts QoS surveys for taking remedial actions wherever required. During FY 2023, a total of 67 x Cities and 26 roads have been surveyed.
  • PTA has issued revised “Fixed Broadband Quality of Service (QoS) Regulations, 2022”
  • Fostering a Safer Digital Environment for Youth: PTA-Tick Tok collaboration and Training Programs initially for 100 Govt. Schools.
  • Keeping Children Safe Online: PTA-UNICEF Collaboration; availability of 1121 toll-free helpline.
  • Enforcement measures / raids against Non-Licensed and Illegal internet service providers and illegal SIM issuance.
  • PTA has been actively conducting awareness campaigns on the social, electronic and print media for on-line safety, prevention against frauds, responsible internet usage, etc.
  • PTA’s Cross-sectoral Collaboration - Towards G5 Regulator: PTA signed MoUs with NEPRA, NADRA and CCP signed during the period under review.
  • PTA collaborated with FAB and SUPARCO for adoption of 6GHz Band for Wi-Fi 6E.
  • To promote automation technologies, PTA introduced loT Low-Power Wide-Area Network (LPWAN) licensing and granted licenses to 14 companies.
  • PTA renewed the cellular mobile license of CMPak (Zong) for AJ&K and GB in August 2022.
  • PTA launched its ‘Gender Inclusion in ICTs’ initiative in collaboration with UNESCO and has developed Draft “Digital Gender Inclusion Strategy”.
  • PTA developed a web-based GIS to access coverage relative to population, complaint resolution, and visibility of cellular infrastructure based on population density. 
  • PTA hosted 3-day South Asian Telecommunications Regulators’ Council (SATRC) Workshop on Policy, Regulation and Services held in May 2023.
  • Infrastructure Sharing Framework has been developed to enable licenses to share their infrastructure facilities on the principles of neutrality and non-discrimination.
  • Drafts of Regulations for Telecom Equipment Standards, Spectrum Sharing Framework, Spectrum Refarming Framework, OTT Regulatory Framework, National Telecom Standards have been prepared and submitted to MoIT for government approval.

Achievements 2021-22

  • Total teledensity crossed 89.5% (Mobile and Fixed) at the end of June 2022.
  • Total mobile subscribers reached 194.6 million.
  • Total broadband subscribers (Mobile and Fixed) reached 118.8 million.
  • Broadband penetration (Mobile and Fixed) reached 53.9%.
  • Cellular mobile services are available to 90% of the population of Pakistan.
  • 3G/4G signals are available to more than 78% of the population.
  • Data usage on mobile networks reached 8,970 petabytes in FY 2022, registering a growth of 31% over the last year.
  • At the end of FY 2022, there are 52,565 cellular mobile cell sites across the country.
  • Telecom sector revenues during FY2022 reached a record level of PKR 694 billion.
  • During FY 2022, total investments in telecom sector crossed USD 2.1 billion, whereas, the sector received USD 168 million FDI inflow during the year.
  • Telecom sector contributed Rs. 325.2 billion to the national exchequer of which Rs. 222.7 billion were in the form of taxes.
  • PTA resolved 99% Consumer Complaints received during the year.
  • PTA conducted spectrum auction in Pakistan for 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz in Sep 2021. Ufone won 9 MHz in 1800 MHz band with the total price of US$ 279 million.
  • First ever cellular spectrum auction for NGMS in AJ&K and GB was held in Sep 2021 for the spectrum bands in 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz, which generated a total revenue of over US$ 30 million. In 1800 MHz, Zong was declared winner of 11.2 MHz, whereas, Telenor and Ufone also won 1.2 MHz each. Telenor also won 15 MHz in 2100 MHz band.
  • A massive spectrum rationalization exercise was carried out in 1800 MHz during the year under review, leading to improved spectrum efficiency that has positively impacted consumer experience.
  • PTA renewed cellular licenses of Telenor and Jazz for another 15 years in Pakistan against a total fee of US$ 935.4 million. Cellular mobile licenses of Jazz, Telenor and Ufone for AJ&K and GB were also renewed against a total fee of US$ 40.5 million. The renewed licenses contain enhanced terms and conditions for coverage and QoS.
  • PTA introduced Short-Range Devices (SRDs) and IoT Framework under which licenses for provision of IoT (Low Power Wide Area Network—LPWAN) services have been awarded.
  • International Social Media platforms such as Bigo, Snack Video, and Mico were registered by PTA under the prevailing legal framework.
  • Issuance of 10 Year Mobile Device Manufacturing Authorization by PTA to 30 companies till date, who have setup plants and are manufacturing mobile devices including 4G smart phones.
  • For the first time in the country’s history, the import volume of mobile handsets registered a decline as most of the local demand was met through indigenously manufactured products, reflecting a huge shift in consumer behaviour. Pakistan manufactured a whopping 41.35 million mobile handsets (including 17.3 million smartphones) during January 2021 to September 2022, resulting in the creation of thousands of skilled jobs and local manufacturing of international brands such as Samsung, Nokia, Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, Techno and Infinix.
  • PTA has blocked 175,000 devices’ IMEIs reported as stolen through DIRBS.
  • PTA launched country’s largest “Digital Gender Inclusion Initiative” whereby the first ever “Gender Mainstreaming in ICTs” strategy is being developed.
  • Global System for Mobile Communication Association (GSMA) has rated Pakistan as an emerging telecom market.
  • PTA reduced the Mobile Termination Rate (MTR) from PKR 0.70 to PKR 0.50 w.e.f. January 01, 2022, which was further reduced to Rs. 0.40 from July 1, 2022 to contribute towards retail tariff rationalization.
  • PTA in collaboration with SBP had a soft launch of Asaan Mobile Account Scheme (AMA) in Dec 2021, followed by commercial launch in Aug 2022 to enable customers to remotely open bank accounts and conduct financial transactions through mobile handsets on 13 AMA on-boarded banks.
  • To ensure the provision of high standard telecom services to consumers, Quality of Service (QoS) surveys and drive test sessions of operators were conducted across 47 cities in Pakistan.

Achievements 2020-21

  • Total teledensity crossed 85.3% (Mobile and Fixed) at the end of June 2021
  • Total mobile subscribers reached 184.2 million at the end of June 2021
  • Total broadband subscriber (Mobile and Fixed) reached 102.7 million at the end of June 2021
  • Broadband penetration (Mobile and Fixed) reached 46.9% at the end of June 2021
  • Fixedline subscribes reached 2.54 million across the country at the end of FY 2021
  • Today, cellular mobile services are available to 89% of the population of Pakistan
  • 4G signals are available to more than 76% of the population
  • Data usage on mobile networks witnessed 52% growth in the year 2021 to over 6,855 Petabytes as against 4,510 Petabytes in the same period last year
  • There are 48,958 cellular mobile cell sites across the country and PTA encourages sharing of resources like infrastructure
  • Over 164,615 Kms (estimated) of fiber (backhaul and metro) infrastructure access, which is further expanding at a rapid pace
  • Telecom sector revenues during FY2021 crossed PKR 644 billion
  • Telecom sector is a significant source of revenue generation for the national exchequer. During FY 2021, telecom sector contributed Rs. 226 billion to the national exchequer in terms of taxes, regulatory fees, initial and annual license fees, activation tax, and other taxes
  • The sector received USD 202 million FDI inflow during FY 2021
  • The sector investments crossed USD 1,094 million from all telecom market players during FY2021
  • Pakistan has the distinction of implementing the world’s first open-source, full-fledged Device Identification, Registration and Blocking System (DIRBS)
  • The launch of DIRBS has also created a significant impact on development of mobile device eco system as companies now have a fair level playing field. It is observed that there is a substantial growth seen in 4G devices (47%) that are connected to local mobile networks and pattern also shows a decline in use of 2G (48%), 3G (5%) devices with consumer appetite increase towards 4G functionality devices. This pattern is compliment of GoP vision of Digital Pakistan
  • PTA has blocked 175 thousand devices IMEI reported as stolen through DIRBS
  • PTA identified & blocked cloned IMEI, whereby 880,780 IMEI were cloned/duplicated against 5.28 Million MSISDN
  • PTA ensures availability of genuine and approved handsets in the local market through DIRBS. Mobile import have increased from 17.27 million (2018) to 28.03 million (2019) 37.55 million (2020) and (2021) 34.92 million units
  • Issuance of 10 Year Mobile Device Manufacturing Authorization by PTA to 30 companies till date, who have setup plants and will manufacture mobile devices including 4G smart phones
  • Due to its proactive complaint resolution mechanism, PTA secured top position in terms of consumer satisfaction on the Pakistan Citizen Portal
  • PTA resolved 100% Consumer Complaints received during FY2021
  • PTA launched a Consumer Support Center (CSC) for registration of complaints about telecom services through a dedicated toll-free number. CSC received on average 38,200 calls/month
  • To ensure the provision of high standard telecom services to consumers, Quality of Service (QoS) surveys and drive test sessions of operators were conducted across 47 cities in Pakistan in FY2021
  • Since August 2018, as many as 1,091,095 URLs have been processed for blocking of objectionable, obscene, and immoral content on the Internet.
  • PTA reduced the Mobile Termination Rate (MTR) to PKR 0.70 effective January 1, 2020 to contribute towards retail tariff rationalization

Achievements 2019-20

  • As of June 2020, cellular mobile services are available to 87% of the population of Pakistan. (For updated figures, visit: (https://www.pta.gov.pk/en/telecom-indicators).
  • 3G/4G signals are available to more than 68.8% of the population.
  • Total teledensity crossed 79.9% (Mobile and Fixed) at the end of June 2020.
  • Fixedline subscribes reached 2.4 million across the country at the end of June 2020.
  • Total mobile subscribers reached 169.6 million at the end of June 2020.
  • There are 46,950 cellular mobile cell sites across the country till June 2020 and PTA encourages sharing of resources like infrastructure.
  • Total broadband subscriber (Mobile and Fixed) reached 83.1 million at the end of June 2020.
  • Broadband penetration (Mobile and Fixed) reached 39.2% at the end of June 2020.
  • Cellular mobile data usage during FY 2020 reached 4,498 PB.
  • Telecom sector revenues during the FY2020 reached PKR 537.2 billion.
  • The sector investments reached USD 733.5 million from all telecom market players duringFY2020.
  • The sector received USD 763.3 million FDI inflow during FY2020.
  • PTA addressed 100% Consumer Complaints received during FY2020.
  • Due to its proactive complaint resolution mechanism, PTA secured top position in terms of consumer satisfaction on the Pakistan Citizen Portal.
  • To ensure the provision of high standard telecom services to consumers, Quality of Service (QoS) surveys and drive test sessions of operators were conducted across 21 cities in Pakistan in FY2020.
  • PTA launched a Consumer Support Center (CSC) for registration of complaints about telecom services through a dedicated toll-free number. CSC received on average 38000 calls/month.
  • Since August 2018, as many as 193,336 URLs have been processed for blocking of objectionable, obscene, and immoral content on the Internet.
  • With DIRBS in place there was an exponential increase of 67.2% in legal import and local assembly of mobile devices i.e. from 17.2 million in 2018 to 28 million in 2019.
  • The provision of a level playing field by PTA has resulted in the establishment of more than 29 local assembly plants and production of over 18.36 million local mobile handsets since 2019.
  • PTA reduced the Mobile Termination Rate (MTR)to PKR 0.70 effective January 1, 2020 to contribute towards retail tariff rationalization.
  • PTA, with support from the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), carried out 39 successful raids against illegal Voice Over IP (VoIP) setups across Pakistan. As many as 139 illegal gateways were confiscated during raids conducted in the year 2019 and during the period between January to June 2020.
  • The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) ranked PTA as 4th Generation Regulator (G4), thus placing Pakistan among the top five regulators in the Asia-Pacific region and the only G4 regulator in South Asia.

Achievements 2018-19

  • Cellular Mobile subscribers increased form 150.23 million in 2017-18 to 161.0 million at the end of FY 2018-19, showing a year-on-year growth of 7%.
  • Total teledensity of 77.8% where the main contribution is by the mobile sector with penetration crossing 76.5%.
  • Total broadband subscriber base of 71.0 million at the end of June 2019, the number of users of the technology is even larger owing to NGMS, Wi-Fi hotspots, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL), Fiber to the Home (FTTH), etc.
  • Broadband penetration (Mobile and Fixed) of over 33.7% calculated on a single subscription basis at the end of June 2019.
  • Data usage over broadband networks was 2,485 PB for FY 2018-19 from 1, 207 PB in FY 2017-18 showing a year-on-year growth of 113%.
  • Telecom sector revenues grew by 12.9% and total revenues stood at PKR 553 billion in FY 2018-19.
  • The sector retained investments and in FY 2018-19 received USD 636 million from all market players.
  • The sector received USD 236 million FDI inflow during the year 2018-19. Two major operators with foreign ownership have declared huge profits at the group level internationally from their operations in Pakistan.
  • At the end of 2019 over 46.1 million mobile financial accounts (m-wallets) and a network of over 437,182 mobile banking agents.
  • In 2019, there are over 1,309 million annual mobile banking transactions (3.6 million daily transactions) with an annual volume of over PKR 4.5 trillion, PKR 12.3 billion worth of daily transactions which is an extraordinary number when compared with traditional banking.
  • Mobile operators are playing a vital role in this success. Telco-partnered banks are the main players in mobile banking with 87% market share in m-wallet accounts and 68% in active agents at the end of December 2019.
  • PTA is also receiving complaints of telecom users via the Federal Ombudsman and the
    Prime Minister’s Citizen Portal. During the reported period, PTA received a total of 68,673 complaints, out of which 99% were successfully addressed. It is worth mentioning that in the review of Pakistan Citizen Portal (PCP) by PM office, PTA stood first for the highest number of resolved complaints and highest satisfaction level of complainants in 2019.
  • PTA identified and blocked more than 824,000 websites/URLs containing pornographic content, including child pornography.
  • To curb the menace of child pornography, PTA acquired a list of 2,384 websites from Interpol and blocked their access in the country during the year 2019.
  • CMOs, under the instruction of PTA, participated in the national cause of funds collection for the construction of the Diamer-Bhasha and Mohmand Dams through Short Messaging Services (SMS).

Capacity Building

  • Country study tour of the 46th Common Training Programme held at PTA, 05 April, 2019.
  • International training course by PTA & GSMA on “5G: The Path to the Next Generation”. 3–4 July 2019.
  • International training on Advanced Spectrum Management for Mobile Telecommunications, 22–23 November, 2018.
  • Workshop on “Future Prospects of 5G and Smart Cities in Pakistan: Digital Vision, Infrastructure Challenges and Role of Stakeholders” held at PTA, 08 February, 2019.
  • Workshop on “DNS Abuse and Misuse” held at PTA, 06 February, 2019
  • One-day training on the land revenue Act, 1967 and allied matters held at PTA, 30 July, 2018.

Other Activities

  • Pakistan won the ITU Council seat once again during elections held at the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference from 29 October, 2018 to 16 November, 2018. PTA played a key role in canvassing and lobbying for Pakistan’s candidature along with MoIT&T and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is also pertinent to note that Pakistan secured 155 out of 177 votes to get elected for a four-year term (2019–2022). Pakistan had been an ITU Council member in 1947, 1952, 1965, 1982, 1989, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006 and 2014.
  • PTA and GSMA Centre of Excellence (CoE) signing ceremony, 02 July, 2019.
  • PTA aims to strengthen its relationship with social media platforms and other global Internet agencies to keep the Internet safe and secure for all users. Our engagement with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Commonwealth Telecommunications Organization (CTO), South Asia Middle East and North Africa (SAMENA), Telecommunications Council, AsiaPacific Telecommunity (APT), South Asian Telecommunication Regulator’s Council (SATRC) and other global and regional telecom agencies in future will be further enhanced and focused. With all these endeavors at the Authority, we look forward to a ‘Digital Pakistan’.

Achievements 2017-18

  • PTA launched Device Identification, Registration & Blocking System (DIRBS)
  • PTA issued LDI license to paragon Telecom (Pvt.) Ltd. For AJK&GB on November 6, 2017.
  • PTA issued first ever Third Party Service Providers (TPSP) License to Virtual Remittances Gateway (VRG).
  • PTA introduced online NOC portal (http://mip.pta.gov.pk/noc/) for citizens of Pakistan often bring new SIM based devices i.e. mobile phones, tablets/PCs, tracking devices, access points and dongles etc.  PTA issued about 5,000 online NOCs per month.
  • PTA issued amendment in Subscribers Antecedents Verification Regulations regarding registration and maintenance of accurate data of subscribers through proper documentation and verification through NADRA.
  • PTA received over 40,000 complaints during the year and 99.64% were redressed in cooperation with respective operators.
  • PTA carried out QoS special survey in which the call centers, service centers and franchises were assessed for provision of appropriate help/information to the customers through their customer care facilities.
  • PTA carried out Billing Verification exercise of Cellular Mobile Operators (CMOs) at different cities of Pakistan in order to access whether the consumers are charged by CMOs according to their advertised tariffs or otherwise.
  • PTA carried out Survey to check access of Mobile subscribers to emergency services at different cities of Pakistan.
  • PTA carried out a customer perception survey in order to assess whether telecom users of both mobile and fixed line services are satisfied or not.
  • Teledensity (Cellular Mobile, FLL & WLL) of the country reached at 74.19% while the cellular mobile subscriber base stood at 150.2 million at the end of FY2017-18.
  • Broadband subscribers in Pakistan reached at 58.33 million at the end of FY 2017-18 as compared to 16.7 million at the end of previous year.
  • Broadband penetration increased to 28.3% at the end of FY 2017-18 as compared to 22.6% in the previous year.
  • Local Loop teledensity stood at 1.3% (1.2% FLL and 0.23% of WLL) with subscription of (FLL&WLL) 2.9 million at the end of FY 2017-18.
  • Telecom sector deposited Rs. 147.2 billion as contribution to national exchequer during the FY 2017-18.
  • Foreign Direct Investment (Inflow) in telecom sector reached at US$ 246 million, which is 7.2% of the total FDI (Inflow) in Pakistan, during FY 2017-18.
  • Telecom revenue reached at Rs. 488.8 billion during FY 2017-18.

Seminars/Conferences, Trainings, Workshops

  • PTA in collaboration the Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT) arranged the SATRC round table workshop on spectrum from 16-18 August, 2017.
  • Women & Mobile GSMA Capasity building workshop November 2017
  • PTA in collaboration with the Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) USA organized a seminar on “Financial inclusion and E-commerce Issues” at PTA H/Qs, Islamabad.
  • PTA joined hands with Internet Society (ISOC) Asia-Pacific Bureau and COMSATS Internet Services to provide online interactive remote education to 6th grade students of a Government Girls High School in rural Multan.

Achievements 2016-17

  • Pakistan’s efforts for the proliferation of telecom services and bridging the digital divide were recognized with the ‘GSMA Government Leadership Award 2017’ at the biggest annual telecom industry gathering at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.
  • PTA carried out another round of auction for the 10 MHz block of the unsold Next Generation Mobile Services (NGMS) spectrum (4G) which was won by M/s Jazz for $295 million plus 10% tax of the auction winning price as the tax to the Federal Government of Pakistan.
  • To check the compliance level of the biometric Verification System (BVS), third party audit of the system was carried out using specialized audit software.
  • Quality of service of the cellular mobile operators was assessed through cross country surveys in the last fiscal years and the observations/deficiencies were taken up with the operators for remedial actions.
  • For the facilitation of the citizens, an online NOC portal has been developed for the clearance of imported mobile handsets.
  • In order to ensure that emergency telecom services are available to the consumers in case of a disaster, PTA carried out a survey to verify the accuracy and quality of support of the emergency helpline numbers by the operators
  • PTA amended the Telecom Consumer Protection Regulations 2009 to refrain the telecom operators from announcing any Prize schemes for the public that are often used as a scam tool by the fraudsters.
  • PTA is actively playing its part as member of the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) and has also enabled interoperability in the mobile financial services by the introduction of Third Party Service Providers (TPSP) licenses
  • To improve the network efficiency and enable substantial cost savings for operators, PTA took the lead to establish Pakistan’s first Internet Exchange Point (IXP) in line with the directions of the Telecom Policy 2015.
  • 99,748 mobile handsets have been blocked during the fiscal year 2016-17 that were reported to be stolen, missing or snatched.
  • PTA received 34,723 consumer complaints against mobile operators, PTCL, ISPs and WLL operators during the FY 2016-17, out of which 99% were resolved
  • Teledensity of the country reached at 72.41% while the cellular mobile subscriber base stood at 139.8 million at the end of FY2016-17.
  • Currently 3 out of 4 cellular mobile operators in Pakistan are offering 4G LTE services whereas 71% of the population already has access to the 3G services being offered by four cellular mobile operators. 
  • Broadband subscribers in Pakistan reached at 44.6 million at the end of FY2016-17 as compared to 2.72 million at the end of FY2012-13.
  • Broadband penetration increased to 22.6% at the end of FY 2016-17 as compared to just 7.37% in the FY 2014-15.
  • Local Loop teledensity stood at 1.56% (1.46% FLL and 0.23% of WLL) with subscription of 3.0 million at the end of FY 2016-17.
  • Telecom sector deposited Rs. 161.43 (Est.) billion as contribution to national exchequer during the FY 2016-17.
  • Foreign Direct Investment (Inflow) in telecom sector reached at US$ 105.7 million FDI inflow in Pakistan, during FY 2016-17.
  • Telecom revenue reached at Rs. 467.6 (est.) billion during FY 2016-17.
  • PTA consumer complaint management system managed to redress 99% of the received complaints.

Seminars/Conferences, Trainings, Workshops

  • H.E. Mr. Mamnoon Hussain, Honorable President of Pakistan graced the “Pakistan Mobile App Awards 2016”ceremony which was aimed at digital empowerment of the Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) using mobile applications.
  • To develop regional harmony for information sharing and technology discussions, PTA held the South Asian Network Operators Group (SANOG) 29 in collaboration with other partners at Islamabad.
  • PTA organized the ‘Pakistan Digital Forum’ where the major stakeholders of ICT development in Pakistan deliberated on the emerging challenges and the solutions thereof.
  • PTA organized a seminar on ‘Telecommunications and Cyber Issues’ in collaboration with the Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP), U.S Department of Commerce.
  • PTA also organized the ‘Pakistan School on Internet Governance’ in collaboration with other partners to develop capacity building on internet development among the youth of Pakistan.  

Achievements 2015-16

  • In response to the growing demand of more spectrum resources for the launch of mobile broadband services, PTA carried out spectrum auction in 850 MHz band which was won by Telenor for US $395 million. Consequent to the award of spectrum, Telenor launched 4G services in the major cities of Pakistan.
  • For the proliferation of telecom services in AJK & GB, PTA also held WLL spectrum auction on 29th December, 2015 where Linkdotnet and PTCL won different lots offered in various regions of the AJK & GB.
  • PTA issued the ‘Regulations for Technical Implementation of Mobile Banking, 2016’ to launch the interoperability mechanism between multiple banks and multiple operators to revolutionize the mobile banking sector.
  • PTA accepted consolidation in the market by approving the merger request of PMCL and Warid Telecom.
  • For formulation of Regulatory Framework to define scope of Inami/Promotional Schemes by Telecom Licensees and to protect consumers from Inami/Promotional Schemes and fraudulent prize scams, PTA made amendments in Telecom Consumers Protection Regulations, 2009 which were notified on January 29, 2016 as ‘Telecommunication Consumer Protection (Amendment) Regulations, 2016’. As a result of this, all CMOs stopped Inami/Promotional Schemes and fraudulent prize scams are minimized. 
  • PTA’s vision to create a ‘Smart Pakistan’ has provided enabling environment for proliferation of technologies driven by Policies in the fields of digital economy, e-health, e-commerce, travel and governance.
  • Teledensity of the country reached 70.9% while the cellular mobile subscriber base stood at 133.24 million at the end of FY2015-16.
  • Currently 3 out of 4 cellular mobile operators are offering 4G services whereas 46% of the population already has access to the 3G services being offered by all four cellular mobile operators. 
  • Broadband subscribers in Pakistan reached 32.3 million at the end of FY2015-16 as compared to 16.89 million at the end of FY2014-15.
  • Broadband penetration increased to 15.63% at the end of FY 2015-16 as compared to just 8.97% at the end of FY2014-15.
  • Local Loop teledensity stood at 1.69% (1.46% FLL and 0.23% of WLL) with subscription of 3.25 million at the end of FY 2015-16.
  • Telecom sector deposited Rs. 159.65 billion as contribution to national exchequer during the FY 2015-16
  • Foreign Direct Investment (Inflow) in telecom sector reached US$ 377.9 million, which is 13.7% of the total FDI inflow in Pakistan, during FY 2015-16.
  • Telecom revenue reached Rs. 456.4 billion wherein data revenues constitute 23% of the total revenues during FY 2015-16.
  • PTA managed to redress 99% of the complaints received through its consumer complaint management system.
  • Two Cellular Mobile Operators (CMOs) Quality of Service (QoS) Surveys were carried out at Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Lahore & Karachi to check voice, SMS and data services. Results of the surveys were published at PTA’s website for awareness of general public.
  • A comprehensive survey was carried out to check compliance of “Protection from Health Related Effects of Radio Based Antennas Regulation 2008”.   
  • On the direction of Supreme Court of Pakistan, type approval for mobile (SIM) based devices was started and implemented successfully
  • As part of type approval for terminal equipment a total of 1600 cases were approved with turnaround time of 4 working days which exceeds average approval times as compared to other countries, 22.4 million mobile device certificates of compliance to technical standards were issued with turnaround time of same working day, contributing to tax collection of approximately US $160 million by FBR
  • Launch of online portal system for personal mobile devices NOC allowing consumers to apply from ease of their own location without physically coming PTA premises
  • Online facilitation for allocation of numbering resources (UAN toll free, short codes, fixed & mobile numbering series) for PTA licensee. This effort resulted in issuance of 800 UAN toll free, 4500 short codes, 34 million mobile numbers allocated to cellular operators and 11 million numbers to fixed line operators resulting in 33.5 million USD revenue for PTA.
  • Some international bodies portray a limited negative aspect of Internet usage in Pakistan. In order to counter the said image a research was conducted and statistics related to Pakistan were gathered to portray factual image of the country. The statistics were later published in PTA’s annual report
  • Deployment of E-portal  for Complaints lodging by Stakeholders
  • Development of Web Analysis Cell for analysis and disposal of complaints related to illegal content over internet.

Seminars/Conferences, Trainings, Workshops

  • PTA held ‘INET Islamabad’ international conference on the importance of digital economy for sustainable development in Pakistan from 16th -18th November 2015.
  • An interactive session titled’ PTA-GSMA Mobile Money Workshop’ was held to deliberate on the evolution of mobile banking to achieve the National Policy objectives.
  • PTA held a workshop on’ Disaster Management using ICTs’ where ITU experts briefed the leading disaster management agencies on the role and importance of telecommunications in emergency situations.
  • In order to develop coordination among the ICT data sources in Pakistan, PTA conducted ’ICT Indicators Symposium’ in Islamabad.
  • PTA hosted ITU-PTA-ICTI Training on Mobile Application Development from 16th-26th February 2016. Participants from ICTI Afghanistan attend the training.

Achievements 2014-15

  • Pakistan was awarded with the prestigious ‘Spectrum for Mobile Broadband Award’ at the Mobile World Congress 2015 held in Barcelona, Spain.
  • Pakistan won a seat on the ITU Council at the 19th ITU Plenipotentiary Conference held in Busan, South Korea which decided 12 members of the Radio Regulations Board (RRB) and 48 members of the ITU Council through an election.
  • Chairman PTA, Dr. Syed Ismail Shah, elected as Vice President of General Assembly of Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT) for three years.
  • Mr. Tariq Sultan, Member (Finance), PTA chaired Session 6 (PLENARY) of the 15th South Asian Telecommunication Regulator’s Council (SATRC) meeting.  Mr. Abdul Samad, Member (Compliance & Enforcement), PTA was nominated as Vice Chairman of the Working Group on Policy Regulation and Services.         
  • PTA carried out the SIM Re-Verification drive all across the country where each mobile phone user was required to go to a service centre, franchise or retail outlet of his/her respective mobile operator and re-verify his identity by matching his/her thumb impression with NADRA’s database. Under this project, 114.9 million SIMs were verified against 44.7 million unique CNICs at the CMO outlets. As a result of non-verification, 98.3 million SIMs were blocked out of which 26.1 million were active.
  • 4G LTE services were rolled out by CMPak Ltd and Warid in the major cities of Pakistan.
  • PTA has deregulated the international telephony rates following the revised ICH Policy issued by the Ministry of IT.
  • PTA launched a web portal named "Smart-Pakistan" (www.smartpakistan.pk) which provides one stop repository and directory of mobile applications focusing on different thematic areas such as m-Education, m-Health, m-Government, etc.
  • PTA carried out QoS survey of cellular mobile operators, including 3G and 4G KPIs, in major cities of Pakistan.
  • PTA carried out a survey to check type approval of mobile handsets being sold in the market.
  • PTA carried out surveys in 3G covered cities to assess the ground situation and ban the sale of DECT 6.0 cordless phones.
  • PTA in collaboration with Islamabad Police and mobile application developer “Pure Push” developed Mobile Emergency Alert System for Schools (MEASS) to ensure effective security of schools, colleges, universities and hospitals situated in Islamabad Capital Territory
  • Teledensity of the country reached at 62.79% while the cellular mobile subscriber base stood at 114.7 million at the end of FY2014-15.
  • Broadband subscribers in Pakistan reached at 16.89 million at the end of FY2014-15 as compared to 3.8 million at the end of previous year showing 345% growth rate.
  • Broadband penetration increased to 8.97% at the end of FY 2014-15 as compared to just 2% in the previous year.
  • Telecom sector deposited Rs. 126.2 billion as contribution to national exchequer during the FY 2014-14.
  • Foreign Direct Investment in telecom sector reached at US$ 121 million, which is 23% of the total net FDI in Pakistan, during FY 2014-15.
  • Telecom revenue reached at Rs. 449.6 billion wherein data revenues constitute 26% of the total revenues during FY 2014-15.

Seminars/Conferences, Trainings, Workshops

  • Training Program on regulatory matters for Afghan Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (ATRA) and Ministry of Communication, Afghanistan, in collaboration with ITU.
  • Multi-stakeholder forum ‘National Broadband Forum’ in collaboration with CISCO Systems.
  • Introductory session on Internet Exchange Point (IXP) in collaboration with APNIC and Internet Society (ISOC).
  • Mobile application development competition ‘The Pakistan Mobile App Awards’ in collaboration with cellular operators, service providers and ISOC.
  • 3rd National Workshop on Telecom Reporting followed by interactive media session.
  • Seminar on “Practicalities and Challenges around Network Rollout and Quality of Service” in collaboration with Anite (NEMO) Finland and Saybi Pakistan

Achievements 2013-14

  • PTA carried out successful auction of the Next Generation Mobile Services (NGMS) spectrum paving way for the launch of 3G, 4G LTE services in Pakistan.
  • PTA’s transparent and fair conduct of NGMS spectrum auction produced a total of US $ 1.22 billion for the Government of Pakistan.
  • The Honorable Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif awarded NGMS licenses to Zong, Ufone, Mobilink and Telenor in a ceremony held at the Serena Hotel, Islamabad.
  • Commercial Launch of 3G services rolled out in the major cities of Pakistan by the cellular mobile operators.
  • PTA implemented the ‘Biometric Verification System (BVS) for SIM sale’ project wherein SIMs are sold and activated only after verification of customer’s finger prints from NADRA.
  • PTA conducted 10 surveys to monitor the compliance status of the SIM sales procedure by the cellular mobile operators’ outlets.
  • PTA blocked 521,440 unauthorized numbers and 48,140 unique IMEIs, 423,871 suspected numbers involved in illegal call termination, 752,603 numbers (which were more than 7 per CNIC).
  • PTA prepared Vision 2025 document highlighting the keys areas of public policy and regulatory interests focuses on development of society and consumers.
  • PTA started the type approval of mobile handsets and also launched a media campaign for awareness of general public.
  • PTA established a dedicated Web Analysis Cell /Call Center for the analysis of blasphemous and pornographic content and blocking of the offending websites through operators.
  • Chairman PTA visited the Bannu Camp to monitor the distribution of money through SIMs of Zong and NADRA registration. PTA also carried out survey of IDP centers to monitor the process of SIM issuance.
  • PTA carried out QoS survey of cellular mobile operators in major cities of Pakistan.
  • Teledensity of the country reached at 79.6% at the end of FY2013-14 as compared to 75.2% in FY2012-13.
  • Cellular mobile subscriber base stood at 139.9 million at the end of FY2013-14 with growth rate of 9.1% over the previous year.
  • Broadband subscribers in Pakistan reached at 3.79 million at the end of FY2013-14 as compared to 2.7 million at the end of previous year showing 39% growth rate.
  • Telecom sector deposited an all time high Rs. 243.8 billion as contribution to national exchequer during the FY 2013-14.
  • Foreign Direct Investment in telecom sector reached at US$ 903 million, which is 34% of the total FDI in Pakistan, during FY 2013-14.
  • Telecom revenue reached at Rs. 465.6 billion as compared to Rs. 440 billion in the previous year.

Seminars/Conferences, Trainings, Workshops

  • Training on ‘3G/4G QoS monitoring and benchmark testing’ in collaboration with Anite (NEMO), Finland.
  • Orientation to Military College of Signals students about the role and working of PTA and latest developments in the telecom sector of Pakistan.

Achievements 2012-13

  • PTA initiated the process of Next Generation Mobile Services (NGMS) auction and hired ‘Value Partners Management Consulting Limited’ as Consultant for NGMS spectrum auction.
  • PTA carried out Broadband QoS Survey and EDGE/GPRS QoS Survey.
  • PTA carried out surveys to monitor the sales channels/retailers of the cellular mobile companies in order to ensure the compliance of PTA’s SIM Sales SOP by Customer Service Centers (CSCs), franchises and retailers.
  • PTA established dedicated helpline for receipt and processing of complaints from general public against suspected grey traffic activity.
  • Teledensity of the country reached at 75.2% at the end of FY2012-13 as compared to 71.7% in FY2011-12.
  • Cellular mobile subscriber base stood at 127.77 million at the end of FY2012-13 with growth rate of 6.7% over the previous year.
  • Broadband subscribers in Pakistan reached at 2.7 million at the end of FY2012-13 as compared to 2.1 million at the end of previous year showing 30% growth rate.
  • Telecom sector deposited over Rs. 124.5 billion as contribution to national exchequer during the FY 2012-13.
  • Total telecom revenue reportedly reached at Rs. 440.2 billion as compared to Rs. 411 billion in the previous year.

Seminars/Conferences, Trainings, Workshops

  • ITU online training on “Consumer Protection & Protection from Spamming, Obnoxious, Fraudulent & Unsolicited Communication”

Achievements 2011-12

  • PTA launched the ‘Automation of Pre-Sale Documentation’ project in order to streamline the record of subscriber antecedents.
  • Prime Minister of Pakistan, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf inaugurated the Cellular Village Connection Trial (CVCT) project at Attmuqam, Neelum Valley, Azad Jammu and Kashmir as part of the efforts to provide latest telecommunication facilities to the people of AJ & K.
  • PTA signed MoU with State Bank of Pakistan to develop a simplified regulatory framework for proliferation of mobile banking services in Pakistan.
  • PTA issued SOP to encourage infrastructure sharing among the cellular operators, outlining the tenancy ratio targets to be achieved by operators in the next three years.
  • PTA prepared a comprehensive Tariff Awareness Guide for consumers highlighting important aspects of tariffs and packages.
  • PTA carried out Broadband Quality of Service Survey, BTS Health Hazard Survey and Mobile Operators helpline Assistance Survey.
  • PTA launched Consumer Perception Survey System (8899) to gauge the consumer experience w.r.t. the cellular mobile services.
  • Teledensity of the country reached at 71.7% at the end of FY2011-12 depicting growth of 5% over FY2010-11.
  • Cellular mobile subscriber base stood at 120.15 million at the end of FY2011-12 with growth rate of 10.3% over the previous year.
  • Broadband subscribers in Pakistan reached at 2.1 million at the end of FY2011-12 as compared to 1.49 million at the end of previous year showing 41% growth rate.
  • Telecom sector deposited over Rs. 132.5 billion as contribution to national exchequer during the FY 2011-12.
  • Total telecom revenue reportedly reached at Rs. 411.4 billion as compared to Rs. 363 billion in the previous year.

Seminars/Conferences, Trainings, Workshops

  • Workshop on “What can telecommunications do for agriculture” in collaboration with LIRNEasia.
  • Workshop on Mobile Banking Regulations in collaboration with Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest (CGAP). 
  • Workshop on IPV6 and DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC) in collaboration with Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC).
  • Seminar on “What’s ahead in telecommunications for Pakistan” in collaboration with Teletimes International.

Achievements 2010-11

  • PTA issued the Vision 2020 document highlighting the prospective developments in the telecom sector over the next ten years.
  • PTA issued Cellular Mobile Network QoS Regulations 2011, GPRS/EDGE Quality of Service Regulations 2010 and Number Allocation and Administration Regulation 2011.
  • PTA declared Most Progressive Telecom Regulator in South Asia while Chairman PTA, Dr. Mohammed Yaseen recognized as Best Telecom Regulatory Leader of the Year by South Asian, Middle Eastern and North African (SAMENA) Telecommunication Council.
  • PTA signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with leading universities of Pakistan to initiate research integrated activities and awarded five Gold Medals and cash prizes to final year students of HEC recognized universities for outstanding research projects in the field of telecom and IT.
  • PTA arranged ‘100 million subscribers’ celebration event where Prime Minister of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Mr. Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, graced the occasion as the Chief Guest.
  • PTA joined hands with Alcatel Lucent Pakistan to donate laptops to the children of SOS Village as part of Corporate Social Responsibility. 
  • PTA launched new online complaint management system for quick resolution of telecom consumer complaints.
  • PTA launched Subscriber Verification System “789” where a consumer buys a non-active SIM and then calls at short code 789 to get it activated from the concerned mobile operator after necessary verification of his/her antecedents.
  • PTA conducted comprehensive QoS survey of cellular mobile companies and PTCL. On account of poor results, PTA issued Show Cause Notice to PTCL.
  • Cellular mobile subscriber base stood at 108.9 million at the end of FY2010-11 with growth rate of 10%, double than that of the previous year.
  • Broadband subscribers in Pakistan crossed the one million mark and reached at 1.49 million at the end of FY2010-11 as compared to 0.9 million at the end of previous year showing 66% growth rate.
  • Telecom sector deposited Rs. 116.9 billion as contribution to national exchequer during the FY 2010-11.
  • Total telecom revenues reached at Rs. 362 billion, 2% more than Rs. 355 billion in the previous year.

Seminars/Conferences, Trainings, Workshops

  • Seminar on “To be or not to be is not the question: 3G is coming” in collaboration with ZhongZing Telecom (ZTE)
  • Seminar on “Manufacturing 3G Devices in Pakistan – Opportunities for all” in collaboration with QualComm Incorporation
  • Conference on “Local Language Content Stimulus” in collaboration with U4U.com
  • ITU course online Training course on “Interconnection and cost Modeling”
  • ITU Workshop on Migrating to converged Licensing
  • ITU Workshop on IPV6  Strategy for Telecom Service Providers
  • ITU Workshop on “Broadband Policy and Regulation: Emerging Practices and Lessons”