The National Assembly Standing Committee on IT and Telecom met on July 14, 2026, to address widespread network degradation. During the session, the Ministry of IT and Telecom (MoITT) and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) repeatedly pointed to the recent 5G rollout as the ultimate solution for consumers.
Pakistan successfully auctioned the 5G spectrum in March 2026, and telecom companies officially began rolling out services. However, the actual deployment numbers presented to the committee paint a deeply concerning picture of the country’s digital future. Here are some of the ground realities of this rollout.
The 449 Towers Reality Check
Whenever committee members complained about dropped calls and terrible internet speeds, officials used the 5G rollout as a defensive shield. However, true 5G networks require massive physical infrastructure.
During the session, Director General PTA Amir Shehzad revealed the actual scale of the deployment. He officially admitted that telecom operators have activated only 449 5G sites across 22 cities in Pakistan. For a country with over 240 million people and roughly 50,000 total telecom towers, 449 sites represent less than 1% of the national infrastructure. You cannot deliver a next-generation network when the physical rollout is virtually nonexistent.
Major Urban Centers Ignored
The deployment numbers look even worse when broken down by city. Committee member Sadiq Memon highlighted the severe neglect of Pakistan’s largest urban and economic hubs. He pointed out that Karachi, the country’s largest city, currently operates only 50 active 5G sites. Furthermore, Hyderabad has a mere 3 operational 5G towers.
Committee Chairman Syed Amin-ul-Haque expressed immediate concern over these numbers. He directed the authorities to prioritize the expansion of 5G towers in Karachi. In response, Federal IT Minister Shaza Fatima attempted to defend the rollout pace. She stated that telecom companies were originally only required to launch 5G services in five cities during the first year. She did, however, acknowledge that Karachi requires more attention.
Meanwhile, the PTA Chairman noted that telecom companies are currently importing the necessary 5G equipment, which dictates the pace of the physical deployment.
Extremely Slow Pace of the 5G Rollout
The most brutally honest assessment of the session came from Sadiq Memon. Looking at the current pace of just 449 towers, he stated that it appears the 5G rollout will not be completed until 2035. Memon correctly pointed out a fatal flaw in this timeline. By the time the telecom sector fully rolls out 5G across the country in 2035, the technology itself will already be outdated.
The government cannot fix the immediate collapse of 3G and 4G services by promising a 5G network that currently barely exists. Until operators heavily invest in physical towers and fiber-optic backhaul, the 5G revolution in Pakistan remains nothing more than a marketing slogan.
