IT ministry intends to provide Internet connectivity to all by 2018

ISLAMABAD: The government is committed to providing internet connectivity to un-served and under-served areas of the country by December 2018, said Minister of State for Information Technology Anusha Rahman.

Speaking at the youth parliament’s special session on ‘state of E-Governance and IT in Pakistan’, Rahman shared key initiatives being taken for the development of the Information and communications technology (ICT )sector.

“We have witnessed a phenomenal increase in broadband penetration, which has surpassed 24 per cent from less than 3 per cent within a short span of two years.”

The minister said that Pakistan’s freelancers have been ranked number 4 in the world, adding that the country is aggressively pursuing an accelerated digitalisation programme to spur socio-economic growth in the country. Talking about the recently launched ICT for Girls Programme, aimed at passing ICT benefits to the less privileged, she said that girls from marginalised sections are being trained on coding and computing in partnership with Microsoft to increase their employability.

Under the Universal Service Fund, the government is spending billions of rupees to ensure spread of telecom and broadband to all areas of the country, Rahman revealed.

“On one hand, we are providing connectivity to the people of unserved/under-served areas while on the other we are working on the affordability and accessibility of these services,” said Rahman.

The government is conducting a feasibility study under the women empowerment programme to provide 30,000 smartphones and training to women of the lowest income strata who have been registered with Benazir Income Sup- port Programme( BISP).

The minister said that the objective of the programme is to give women living in rural areas access to basic E-Services. With increasing technological advancement, Pakistan’s urban areas seem better-positioned to take advantage. However, the government is making efforts to include the under developed and rural areas to be a part of the progress.

With increasing technological advancement, Pakistan’s urban areas seem better-positioned to take advantage. However, the government is making efforts to include the under developed and rural areas to be a part of the progress