Hammad optimistic top smartphone manufacturers to enter Pakistan soon

Federal Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar has expressed optimism that top smartphone manufacturing companies would soon set up their production hubs in Pakistan.

Briefing on his government’s performance regarding the promotion of mobile phone manufacturing in the country, the minister said that when the incumbent government came to power two years ago, it notices that the manufacturing and exports of mobile phones and smartphones were an important part of the emerging economies such as Vietnam.

“However that was not the case in Pakistan, after we studied the market we found that 70 percent to 80 percent of mobile phones being sold in the country were smuggled. To counter this the government alongside PTA introduced DIRBS, which not only eliminated mobile phone smuggling but the tax revenue generated from mobile phone imports also more than doubled from Rs 20 billion to Rs 55 billion in a year,” said the minister.

He said that as businesses move towards locally manufacturing mobile phones after the smuggling was stalled and the introduction of the Mobile Phone Manufacturing Policy, they are witnessing that a number of international firms are partnering with local companies to manufacture smartphones in Pakistan.

The Minister added that the target of these companies is not only to cater to the local market but also to export as well. “Therefore I believe that in the coming years, smartphone and mobile phone manufacturing would become export commodities and an important part of the economy of Pakistan,” said Azhar.

He informed that a number of major smartphone manufacturing brands are drawing their feasibilities. Azhar said that Vivo, a leading manufacturer of Smartphones as already started is production in Faisalabad.

“A number of smartphone manufacturing companies are building their bases in Pakistan, I am of the view that others will follow soon as Pakistan offers the best business environment in the region,” he said.