Pakistan’s local mobile industry witnessed remarkable growth as the companies have manufactured around 19.7 million mobile phones and smart devices during the last calendar year, especially after the government introduced a Mobile Manufacturing Policy to encourage local production.
“Due to increased local manufacturing, the import of mobile and smartphone devices has decreased from 10.3 million to a record level of 1.4 million,” a senior official of the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication said.
Under the Mobile Device Manufacturing Policy, he said around 30 mobile manufacturers have been issued licenses to start local production of mobile devices. “A mobile device manufacturing policy had been made to encourage local production and counter the security threat.”
The official said, the mobile devices produced by these manufacturers would not only be sold in the country but could also be exported to other competitive markets of the region and beyond. “The device manufacturing plants shall be instrumental in providing new job opportunities and low-priced handsets for Pakistani users.”
He said the number of 3G and 4G service users in Pakistan had significantly increased and reached 121 million by the end of November 2022, while the number of active mobile SIMs reached 194 million during the same period.
The official informed that the number of broadband subscribers reached 124 million; whereas the broadband penetration was recorded at 56 percent.
Source: IBP