Fibre shortfall remains key hurdle to effective 5G rollout

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s limited optical fibre network remains a major obstacle to the effective rollout of 5G services, even as licences have been auctioned to operators and trial deployments have taken place in some areas.

Internet speeds remain slow in major cities including Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, while the situation is significantly worse in peripheral regions such as Azad Kashmir and Balochistan, where dependable high-speed connectivity is still not widely available. Pakistan’s average internet speed currently stands at 25 Mbps, placing the country at 198th position globally.

The government has auctioned 5G licences to three operators — Jazz, Ufone and Zong — enabling them to begin services in major urban centres. However, although some operators have carried out limited-scale 5G trials, substantial preparatory work is still needed before high-speed broadband can be launched commercially across metropolitan areas.

Telecom experts say optical fibre deployment is central to any successful 5G rollout in Pakistan. At present, only 15% to 18% of cell sites are connected through fibre, leaving most towers dependent on microwave links that are unable to meet the high-capacity and low-latency requirements of 5G services.

Right-of-way approvals remain one of the principal barriers to expansion, with multiple authorities including municipalities, cantonments and development bodies involved in the process. This fragmentation causes delays of 12 to 18 months and raises costs, although the government’s recent decision to abolish right-of-way charges on key corridors has provided some relief.

Other constraints include high capital expenditure, inflation, low average revenue per user and taxation, all of which discourage faster investment in trenching and last-mile fibre. Terrain differences, flood risks and a shortage of skilled labour for splicing and installation also complicate deployment, while congestion in urban areas and sparse populations in rural regions contribute to uneven progress.

Pakistan’s total fibre footprint exceeds 211,000 kilometres, but backhaul density remains inadequate for 5G needs. Without raising fibreisation to at least 60% in the coming years, 5G services would continue to face capacity constraints that could undermine broader digital transformation goals.

Only 18% of the country’s 58,423 cell sites had been fibreised as of June 2025. Pakistan currently has around 234,752 kilometres of deployed optical fibre cable, including 77,851 km of long-haul fibre and 156,901 km of metro fibre. Experts cited said this remains insufficient for the country’s rising digital requirements.

Shakeel Muhammad, a telecom engineer with experience in optical fibre deployment, said expanding fibre infrastructure is both expensive and operationally difficult, especially when companies try to move quickly in densely populated cities. He said the government, through the Universal Service Fund (USF), and telecom operators would both need to make major investments in telecom infrastructure, including optical fibre networks and related communication systems, to support next-generation broadband services.

He also said the rapid deployment of advanced 5G infrastructure is being hindered by a shortage of skilled and experienced workers in the telecom sector, adding that operators may have to bring in foreign professionals from parent companies or other countries.

Out of a total allocation of Rs141 billion, the government has earmarked Rs35.7 billion for telecom operators under the USF to expand optical fibre cable networks in different regions. Telecom operators have also invested significantly in connecting their towers to fibre networks.

Dr Noman Said, described as an expert in technological hardware, said the installation of advanced equipment at telecom sites would help attract foreign direct investment and support the transfer of modern technology to Pakistan. He called for a long-term hardware policy to enable local production of IT and telecom equipment, devices and tools, saying such a policy would speed up technology adoption while saving foreign exchange.

He further said that rapid expansion of optical fibre infrastructure is necessary to provide high-speed internet across the country and would support economic digitisation as well as growth in IT exports.

Saad Shah, an IT services exporter, said Pakistan’s IT exports have grown steadily over the years and have brought in foreign exchange despite several challenges, particularly slow internet speeds affecting IT firms. He said weak internet performance often delays the delivery of high-value projects to overseas clients. "We expect that 5G services will become available in IT parks across different cities, enabling exports to grow at a faster pace than in previous years," he remarked.

Need for coordinated policy action

Addressing the fibre deficit would require a unified national right-of-way policy, faster approvals, public-private partnerships and targeted incentives under initiatives such as the Digital Economy Enhancement Project (DEEP). Coordinated efforts by the PTA, telecom operators and the government are essential if Pakistan is to overcome these barriers and support a broader nationwide 5G rollout.