Regulation

Pakistan plans imminent spectrum auctions to address internet issues

Pakistan plans imminent spectrum auctions to address internet issues

The Government of Pakistan has reportedly approved a process for the auction of 600MHz of spectrum within two months. 

It appears that the aim of the upcoming auction is not only to improve 3G and 4G services but also to enable the launch of 5G, and encourage more international operators to enter the country.

Pakistan is expected to offer 606MHz of new spectrum across six major bands, including 700MHz, 1800MHz, 2100MHz, 2300MHz and new bands 2600MHz and 3500MHz.

The 2600 and 3500MHz band are considered to be suited for 5G services. Indeed, the aim is for the auction be followed by the rollout of 5G internet in five to six months.

This decision was reportedly made early last week at a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the country’s Cabinet.

According to Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and Information Technology Minister Shaza Fatima Khwaja, quoted in the Dawn news service, the new spectrum auction is to be completed by early February – no mean feat given that it could be ten times larger than the 60MHz auctioned over all past auctions put together.

The urgency is, however, explained by the effect of internet congestion which is seen as holding back Pakistan’s digital transformation efforts.

The Finance Minister said last week that recommendations for the spectrum auction were prepared by the US-based economic consulting industry firm National Economic Research Associates (NERA).

These recommendations are based on experiences in recent spectrum auctions in other countries, including process, pricing mechanism, auction and implementation strategies. 

The IT Minister explained that Pakistan’s 245 million-strong population has, to date, had access to only 274MHz spectrum compared to the 600MHz available to the 175 million people of neighbouring Bangladesh. 

The internet is seen as integral to the government’s digitisation efforts, for which the Digital Nation Pakistan Act 2025 has already been put in place. Connect 2030, a vision soon to be inaugurated by the prime minister, requires the government to ensure that over the next five years, the minimum connectivity available to users should be 100 Mbps.



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