Pakistan has around 100 million WhatsApp users who send approximately 12 billion messages every day, according to Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Chairman Major General (retd.) Hafeez ur Rehman.

Speaking at a meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecom on Tuesday, the PTA chairman shared figures highlighting the scale of WhatsApp usage in the country.

He told lawmakers that the messaging platform has around 100 million users in Pakistan, generating nearly 12 billion messages daily.

The figures were shared as committee members raised concerns about poor telecom services, unreliable mobile networks and frequent call disconnections across the country.

One committee member complained that WhatsApp calls were disconnecting even in Islamabad, questioning why users continued to face connectivity problems in the federal capital despite the presence of major telecom infrastructure.

The PTA chairman acknowledged that Pakistan’s telecom services needed significant improvement. He said the regulator had inspected mobile towers and visited 41 districts alongside telecom operators to identify issues affecting network performance.

He also pointed to electricity outages as a major challenge for telecom companies, explaining that improved power availability could help strengthen mobile network performance.

The discussion highlighted the growing dependence on digital communication platforms in Pakistan, where WhatsApp has become a major channel for everyday messaging and calls.