PTA says telecom revenue increased to Rs694 billion in 2021-22

ISLAMABAD: The telecom sector generated a record-high revenue of Rs694 billion in the FY 2021-2022, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority’s (PTA) annual report said.

The fiscal year 2021-22 remained outstanding for the telecom sector as it generated Rs694 billion in revenue. The sector attracted an investment of $2,073 million. The sector contributed Rs325.2 billion to the national exchequer.

Pakistan’s telecom sector generated Rs222.102 billion in income through the NEXT generation mobile services auction.

Pakistan has over 197 million telecom subscribers (fixed and mobile), with teledensity touching 90%. Moreover, biometrically verified SIMs/subscribers increased to 194 million, whereas, broadband subscription grew to 124 million with 56% penetration and annual mobile data usage touching 8,970 petabytes (6.8 GB per subscriber, per month), showing annual growth of 31%.

In FY 2021-22, PTA also introduced Short-Range Devices (SRDs) and IoT Framework under which licenses for the provision of IoT (Low Power Wide Area Network—LPWAN) services have been awarded.

For the first time in Pakistan’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.

The Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) has rated Pakistan as an ‘emerging’ telecom market—a recognition that owes itself to multiple interventions.