ISLAMABAD

Senior government officials, telecom industry leaders, regulators and international development partners gathered in Islamabad on Monday for the GSMA Digital Nation Pakistan Ministerial Roundtable, reaffirming their commitment to accelerate the country’s Digital Pakistan 2030 agenda through coordinated reforms and sustained investment.

The high-level forum brought together representatives from the federal government, all four provinces, Gilgit-Baltistan, the telecom regulator, mobile industry executives and development organizations to identify practical measures aimed at expanding digital connectivity, strengthening investment and promoting inclusive growth.

At the event, the GSMA released a new discussion paper, Digital Pakistan 2030: Building Momentum for Sustainable Investment, Trust and Inclusive Growth, highlighting Pakistan’s recent progress in spectrum policy, mobile broadband adoption, smartphone penetration, women’s digital inclusion, cybersecurity and collaboration between government and industry.

The report identified five strategic priorities for the next phase of Pakistan’s digital transformation: improving investment certainty through predictable spectrum and infrastructure policies; expanding digital inclusion by improving affordability, digital literacy and rural connectivity; preparing infrastructure for the artificial intelligence (AI) economy through investment in 5G, fiber networks and data centers; strengthening trusted digital infrastructure through enhanced cybersecurity and digital identity frameworks; and improving coordination among governments, regulators, industry and development partners.

“Pakistan has established important foundations for digital growth, and the momentum of the past year is clear,” Julian Gorman said during the roundtable.

He said continued collaboration across government, industry and development organizations would be essential to sustain digital growth, attract long-term investment and deliver the objectives of Digital Pakistan 2030.

The discussion paper also proposed a five-point action agenda focused on creating investment certainty, accelerating digital inclusion, building trusted digital infrastructure, preparing Pakistan for the AI economy and strengthening national coordination.

The ministerial roundtable concluded with a joint call for closer collaboration between public and private sector stakeholders, reaffirming a shared commitment to advance Pakistan’s digital economy through coordinated implementation, policy stability and sustained investment.