our correspondent
ISLAMABAD
Chairman Pakistan Telecommunication Authority Maj Gen (retd) Amir Azeem Bajwa has said that readiness of telecom infrastructure will be sufficient to support 5G networks and services across the country.
The PTA chairman said this while addressing the SAMENA Telecommunications Council Leaders’ Summit virtually, which was attended by telecommunications leaders and experts from Pakistan and across the world. The conference reviewed plans for unleashing the potential of 5G networks to boost economies and societies in a post COVID-19 environment.
Federal Secretary of IT and Telecommunication Shoaib Ahmad Siddiqui, Tania Aidrus, Special Assistant to the PM for Digital Pakistan, and Mark Meng, CEO of Huawei Pakistan, were all in attendance for this year’s SAMENA Telecommunications Council Leaders’ Summit, which was hosted by Huawei for the seventh consecutive year.
Shoaib Ahmad Siddiqui said, “Crisis presents both danger and opportunity. Let’s focus on all the opportunities in the current pandemic and develop the ICT sector as the true key technology enabler for digital harmony, connectivity and cooperation among all sectors of society.”
Mark Meng, CEO of Huawei Pakistan committed that Huawei will support the government’s Digital Pakistan initiative to move towards a diversified knowledge-based economy with the latest technologies like 5G, AI, and Internet Of Things and unlock new venues of growth and innovation.”
Bocar ABA, CEO of SAMENA Telecommunications Council, said, “We are increasingly witnessing progressiveness across Pakistan’s ICT policy and regulatory landscape.” He deemed it necessary for 5G preparations to be accelerated in the country with the hopes of achieving “digital inclusion” at all levels of society.
The Summit also explored how ICT stakeholders can work together with industry verticals to turn their vision into reality at the local and regional level. Participants reviewed 5G ecosystem cooperation in the Middle East and Pakistan, and how 5G paired with complementary technologies such as cloud, AI and can create new industry applications. Better integration of AI into the public health response was also spotlighted.
