Pakistan aims to extend fiber-optic connectivity to 7.5 million households and achieve 80 percent fiber-to-the-site (FTTS) coverage within the next five years, the Ministry of IT and Telecommunication (MoITT) announced. These goals are part of the National Fiberization Policy currently being developed to enhance the country’s fixed broadband infrastructure and deliver average download speeds of 60 Mbps nationwide.

The policy is being formulated under the Digital Economy Enhancement Project (DEEP), with a dedicated Project Management Unit (PMU) in the process of being established. Once operational, the PMU will hire a consultancy firm through a competitive process to finalize the policy framework.

This initiative forms a key component of Pakistan’s broader strategy to strengthen digital infrastructure and prepare for emerging technologies such as 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT).

Private sector investment is central to the policy’s success. The government plans to address long-standing challenges including high deployment costs, right-of-way (RoW) hurdles, and regulatory inefficiencies. Proposed measures include rationalizing RoW fees and introducing streamlined approval processes to accelerate network rollout and ease financial pressures on telecom operators.

Currently, Pakistan has approximately 211,473 kilometers of optical fiber cable deployed, comprising 75,967 km of long-haul and 135,506 km of metro fiber networks. Despite this extensive network, rising internet demand and evolving technology standards require significant expansion and improved network resilience, especially in long-haul connectivity.

The Telecom Wing of MoITT is leading the policy drafting in collaboration with key stakeholders such as the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and telecom operators. The policy is expected to be finalized by the end of the year after multiple consultation phases addressing cost-sharing models, single-window approvals, and infrastructure sharing.