Considering the fast improving economic outlook in Pakistan, and if the sound economic policies of the last four years are continued then this is very much attainable.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?date=10%2F16%2F2003
6b investment expected after telecom deregulation: Awais
Federal minister for information technology Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari said Wednesday that Pakistan is expected to receive investment of $6 billion over a period of seven years after the deregulation of the telecom sector. “The market is ripe for getting more and more competitive nimble players,” he said while delivering a keynote address at Telecom 2003 Conference, organised by International Telecommun-ication Union, in Geneva, said a fax message received here. He added that there would be no mid-stream changes in the policy. The minister is heading the Pakistani delegation to the event that is organized every four years. More than 100 countries are attending the conference, which was formerly opened at Palexpo Complex in Geneva. Mr Leghari informed the delegates that some areas in the telecom policy where Pakistan government had come out with better terms and agreements than the World Trade Organisation (WTO) commitments included up to 100 percent foreign ownership, a committed policy on number and technology neutrality, five-year policy review and 20 years license period, low upfront license fee and performance bond, independence of regulatory bodies and regulations, transparency of policy and licensing process.
He said all the initiatives were committed by the government of Pakistan in the interest of fast growth in an under-penetrated Pakistani market with a telephone density of about three percent. He said that in Pakistan the local players were on strong grounds both in the fixed and mobile phone sectors that had also attracted some key regional and global players. “There are much greater opportunities for multinational companies and operators and they need to be proactive to venture and partner efforts with local players,” he said. The minister observed that the telecom landscape around the world was also changing fast with liberalisation and deregulation bringing about basic changes in the telecom sector paradigm. The crunch both in telecom service and equipment supply market has influenced the way operators, manufacturers and local entrepreneurs strategize business approaches, he said, adding the plummeting technology stocks and equipment prices were now a reality facing the industry. He added that the way telecom sector players had lost money in the markets had given rise to new visions to the industry. “The centre of activities in the telecom landscape for next seven to 10 years is going to be more towards emerging markets of Asia Pacific, Middle East, Latin America and African continent. These regions would dominate as major telecom growth centres,” said the minister.
Further, Mr Leghari noted that the priority for high-profile new range of services such as 3 G mobile, broadband wireless and fibre-based services in the developed world were sure to continue but the developing countries would be the markets for core telecom equipment and services. He said the local and regional entrepreneurs would make significant difference in expansion of telecom activities compared to few years ago when such opportunities were availed only by big players. “If we look in the regional context of South Asia, Far East and Central Asia, the local entrepreneurs have started contributing more significantly because of the awareness and demand for variety of low cost services, availability of cost effective local equipment, low cost human capital and skilled manpower as is the case with China and Malaysia,” he added. The minister also highlighted the pattern in Pakistan where some 300 data network operators, internet service providers, pay phone and pre-paid card operators, cellular mobile service providers and a host of value-added entrepreneurs were successfully providing a broad range of services. “In our estimate, even limited telecom liberalisation initiatives (4-5 years) have attracted investment of about a billion dollars in Pakistan,” he said, noting that private sector entrepreneurs had contributed more significantly in countries like Malaysia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Philippines and India.