Pakistan’s Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications (MoITT) has requested a total of PKR1.33 billion (USD12.5 million) to pay for new telecom projects in the 2016/17 financial year, through the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP), ProPakistani reports. The request included a call for PKR489 million for the Special Communication Organisation (SCO) for the provision of GSM coverage along the Karakoram Highway. Other projects included: the replacement of a GSM network in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJ&K), PKR580 million; the second phase of a broadband expansion programme in AJ&K (PKR44.4 million); and the expansion of broadband services in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). In addition to various infrastructure development projects, the funds would also be used for a several research and support programmes.
The Ministry of Planning, Development and Reform, meanwhile, has also reportedly released PKR1.145 billion for the construction of a cross-border fibre-optic cable linking Pakistan and China.