Pakistan Approves Bill to Fast-Track Internet and Mobile Network Expansion

The National Assembly Standing Committee on Information Technology has approved the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) Amendment Bill aimed at speeding up internet expansion and mobile network services across Pakistan.

The bill aims to adjust telecom laws to reduce procedural hurdles and allow telecom operators to deploy fiber optic cables and mobile towers more efficiently. The bill also increases government oversight of telecom regulators and state-run institutions to improve governance in the sector.

Another major provision of the bill simplifies Right of Way (RoW) rules to make it easier to lay fiber optic networks. Licensed operators will be given clearer legal access to public and private land for installing, operating, and maintaining telecom infrastructure. The bill also states that the board of the National Telecommunication Corporation (NTC) will be constituted under the State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) framework.

Under the amendments, the federal government will have the authority to determine the remuneration of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) chairman and its members. PTA’s financial operations will also be placed under the Public Finance Management Act, 2019, to improve transparency, accountability, and fiscal discipline.

The committee also deferred approval of the Electronic Transactions Amendment Bill 2026. The review of the Ministry of IT’s Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) was also postponed due to the ongoing National Assembly session. The committee decided that PSDP projects will be reviewed at its next meeting.