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Pakistan is gradually on its way to becoming a digital landscape but it still has a long way to go.
Hootsuite, a global social media management platform, has released a report “Digital in 2017” with statistical indicators of social media and digital trends of about 238 countries. The key findings show that 50% of the world is connected to the internet, global social media increased by 21% and now 91% social media users are online via mobile. Simon Kemp, We Are Social, said,
“Half of the world’s population is now online, which is a testament to the speed with which digital connectivity is helping to improve people’s lives. The increase in internet users in developing economies is particularly encouraging. Given this latest data, it’s probably time for us to stop referring to social as ‘new media’, and integrate it more seamlessly into our day-to-day activities.”
Pakistan
With a total population of about 194 million, Pakistan is the sixth most populous country in the world. About 140 million population has mobile subscriptions, which shows that Pakistan is becoming an economy reliant on mobile technology. With a penetration of 18%, Pakistan has 35.1 million internet users according to the report. The active social media users are 31 million.
As compared to 2016, the digital growth has significantly improved with 20% increase in internet users, 35% in social media users and 47% increase in active mobile users over the year.
The use of laptops and desktops has decreased by 22% as more and more people are shifting towards using mobiles. About 31 million population uses Facebook and 90% of them access it via mobiles. There are 22% female profiles and 78% male profiles in Pakistan.
Based on cellular subscriptions, 97% people have pre-paid connection and 29% have broadband connections (3G, 4G).
A huge percentage of Pakistan’s population is still offline and the gender gap in using online media is one of the reasons. Only 29% of women in Pakistan have smartphones as compared to 77% of men, according to a report by Karandaaz Pakistan.
A digitally-connected Pakistan is a key to digital and economic development. Social media and digital marketing are now the top ways of doing businesses and reaching to customers. With 5th largest young population and increasing usage of smartphones, Pakistan has the potential of becoming a digital landscape by adopting latest technologies.
