������Ƶ

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will lay three new submarine Internet cables this year in a bid to transform digital connectivity, expand bandwidth capacity and support the rollout of 5G services, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported this week. 

Officials say the addition of new submarine cables will expand bandwidth, improve reliability and strengthen Pakistan’s ability to integrate with global data flows. The government also hopes the upgrade will accelerate the rollout of 5G services and attract investment in digital industries ranging from e-commerce to financial technology.

“This initiative will not only boost Internet speed but also ensure reliability, reduce service outages, and unlock broader economic potential,” Federal Minister for Information Technology Shaza Fatima Khawaja was quoted by Radio Pakistan as saying.

The new cables are expected to reduce dependence on older, outage-prone systems such as AAE-1 and SMW-4 and position Pakistan more strongly in global digital networks, according to the broadcaster.

Pakistan has over 150 million Internet subscribers, most of them mobile broadband users, making it one of the largest online markets in the world.

But connectivity remains inconsistent. The country has faced repeated cable faults that disrupt bandwidth nationwide, while limited fiber penetration slows the growth of digital services.

Civil society groups also point out that frequent government-ordered Internet shutdowns, often imposed during protests or security operations, have undermined confidence in the digital economy. Rights activists say such disruptions cost billions of rupees in lost productivity and erode freedom of expression online. 

The government denies it uses Internet shutdowns as a tool or censorship.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is finalizing a five-year Textiles and Apparel Policy as well as a National Industrial Policy aimed at making industry regionally competitive, removing trade barriers and ensuring long-term export growth, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan said on Friday.

The textile and apparel sector is Pakistan’s largest export earner, accounting for more than half of the country’s total exports, contributing around 8.5 percent of GDP and employing nearly 40 percent of the industrial labor force. But high energy costs, outdated infrastructure and policy uncertainty have slowed growth and left the country trailing regional peers such as Bangladesh.

“Pakistan must rely on export growth,” Khan said in remarks released by the commerce ministry after a meeting with industry representatives, including the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), where he discussed the new textile policy. 

“The government is committed to ensure all decisions are taken in consultation with stakeholders. For the first time, the government and industry are aligned in their determination to revive and enhance momentum of increasing exports.”

He added: “We will announce permanent and predictable policies to promote exports.”

Khan said the government would also analyze regional competitors’ policies, citing his recent visit to Dhaka where he observed Bangladesh’s “remarkable success in industrial development and exports of ready-made garments.” 

Bangladesh’s ready-made garment sector now generates about $50 billion annually and accounts for nearly 80 percent of its total exports, a scale Pakistan has struggled to match.

Prime Minister’s Special Assistant on Industries and Production Haroon Akhtar Khan said the new industrial policy would extend beyond a few sectors to cover the broader industrial landscape, including energy, tariffs and taxation, financing and economic zones. 

“The policy will also include facilitation for Greenfield projects, land-lease models under Public-Private Partnership, and a one-window facility for investor facilitation,” he said, adding that the initiative would “inject new vigor into industrial development” under Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s vision.

APTMA representatives urged the government to remove structural inefficiencies and provide a more enabling environment to improve competitiveness in global markets.

Separately this week, the Pakistan Textile Council (PTC) raised concerns over recent amendments to the Export Facilitation Scheme that removed essential raw materials such as cotton, cotton yarn and grey cloth without specifying tariff codes. 

PTC Chairman Fawad Anwar said the ambiguity was causing delays and inconsistent implementation, risking disruption to supply chains. 

“This ambiguity is already causing delays, inconsistent implementation, and risks of disruption in the supply chain, which could harm Pakistan’s largest foreign exchange–earning sector, the textile industry,” he warned.