Pakistan's telecom sector adds Rs173.22bn to national exchequer

ISLAMABAD: The telecommunication sector contributed Rs173.22 billion to the national exchequer in terms of taxes, regulatory fees, initial and annual license fees, activation tax, and other charges during the first two-quarters of the Financial Year 2020.

According the Economic Survey 2019-20 unveiled by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh at a news conference here in the federal capital, the telecom sector has emerged as one of the vibrant sectors of Pakistan's economy, generating increased revenues, investment, and contributions to the national exchequer.

According to the survey for the period of July 2015 to February 2020, the sector attracted over $1.5 billion worth of foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows, whereas a total of $8.5 billion has been invested by telecom players in Pakistan since 2002.

Commercial launch of 3G and 4G services opened new opportunities for revenue generation for mobile operators and enabled the development of new applications and database services.

Annual revenues from the telecom sector have reached an estimated Rs553.8 billion during FY2019, as opposed to Rs440 billion last year, registering an annual growth.

Revenues from the telecom sector reached an estimated Rs276.5 billion in the first two quarters of FY2020.

The survey added that to date, 7,230km of optic fibre cable (OFC) was laid, while 1,234 tehsil headquarters (THQs) and towns were provided with the connectivity.

In the current fiscal year, the Universal Service Fund (USF) has planned to launch its FATA Package-2, targeting OFC connectivity to 40 THQs and towns with the help of 837km of OFC in the Bajaur, Mohmand, Khyber, Orakzai, Kurram, Peshawar, and Kohat agencies.