ISLAMABAD: Total revenues of Pakistan's telecom sector have been raised to Rs452.8 billion in FY-16 as compared to Rs446 billion in FY-15.
According to Khaleej Times, the telecom sector in Pakistan, besides the auto industry, is moving in fast track enjoying high demand as it contributed Rs157.8 billion to the national exchequer.
The year-on-year increase is small but the sector has big potential to return to high-growth mode after this period of consolidation. It has introduced 3G and 4G technologies which have fully become operational," said a top PTA official.
The telecom sector contributed Rs157.8 billion to the national exchequer on account of tax payments as against Rs126 billion in FY-15.
The general sales tax paid by telephone operators totalled Rs41.65 billion as compared to Rs45.8 billion a year ago. It was a record Rs60.1 billion in FY-14.
The reason for the good performance of both the telecom and auto sectors in Pakistan is that they attract big foreign investment, deploy the latest technology and meet the requirements of a population with a rising per capita income.
The last 10 years have seen the entry of IT and mobile telephony, chiefly from foreign investors. The number of users of mobile telephones and IT climbed to over 133 million. The conventional land line sector has grown too and users now number 3.931 million plus, under the management of the Pakistan Telecommunications Corporation.
The PTA also reports that the telecom sector attracted $719.7 million investment in FY-16, down from $1.001 billion in FY-15. Of the $719.7 million investment, telephone companies got $659.4 million. The LDI (long distance and international) segment received $6.3 million and local long distance companies got $4 million.
The class value-added services showed "a remarkable growth and generated Rs43 million in revenue, up from just Rs3.78 million a year ago."
Expansion, however, is ongoing in several sectors in which IT and mobile companies are providing new services and the most modern technology.
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