The caretaker federal government has approved the National Space Policy to enable satellite communication services in the country.
Caretaker Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Umar Saif said that multinational corporations would launch satellite services in Pakistan after getting a no-objection certificate from the Defence Ministry. To support the effort, the private sector will contribute 6 percent of its earnings to the government’s R&D Fund.
The minister stated that the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) would offer satellite communication service licenses to interested companies. He added that people living in remote areas of Pakistan would now be able to communicate using low-orbit satellite services.
The government has calculated a $40 million annual loss to the country as a result of the unregulated space sector. With the new space policy ready to go, Elon Musk’s Starlink may be the first company to deploy low-orbit satellite services in Pakistan after facing years of delay.