No internet blockade by government: IT Minister

Shaza Fatima Khawaja, the minister of state for information technology and telecommunication, said on Sunday that there has been neither a slowdown nor a speed reduction of internet service in Pakistan. She attributed any reduction in internet speed to the growing popularity of virtual private networks (VPNs) and affirmed that the government is trying to make sure the public does not experience such internet problems.

Addressing a news conference in Islamabad, Fatima stressed that the government was taking steps to boost the IT sector and that the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) had attracted more investments into the region. She mentioned the IT sector was allocated a Rs 60 billion budget despite the financial difficulties, whereas a more than Rs 4 billion budget had been set aside for children to receive innovative IT training.

Fatima said more than 4.5 million children have joined a digital skills program thanks to cooperation between the Federal Ministry and Meta, Google, and Microsoft. She further notified the establishment of two IT parks, one in Islamabad and one in Karachi, which are estimated to produce more than 10,000 jobs.

Fatima even disclosed that an Artificial Intelligence (AI) semiconductor policy would soon be announced, and work is in progress. In addition, she said the 5G spectrum auction was planned to take place in the near future.