Page 50 - SAMENA Trends - July-August 2023

REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

increased from 102.77 million in March to 102.9 million subscrib- million users in March to reach 70.74 million users in April. On the
ers in April. The report monitored an increase in the number of other hand, the report showed a decline in the number of Internet
Internet users by about 700,000 new customers during April. The users using USB modems during the month of April, by 7.3%, as the
total number of Internet users in April was about 84.4 million us- number of users declined from 2.52 million users in March to reach
ers, compared to 83.7 million users in March. The number of ADSL 2.33 million users in April. In terms of landline users, the report
users recorded a slight growth of 0.46% to 11.37 million in April, showed an increase in the number of users by about 530 thousand
compared to 11.32 million users in March. According to the report, users during the month of April compared to March, recording a
the number of mobile internet users grew by 1.26% during April growth rate of 4.5%. The number of landline users increased from
compared to March, as the number of users increased from 69.86 11.68 million users in March to 12.21 million users in April.

UAE Regulator and Telcos Reach
10Gbps in 5G-Advanced Trial

The Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Au-
thority (TDRA) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has announced
the completion of the second phase of testing of 5G-Advanced
services in the 6GHz band. The regulator is working with local ser-
vice providers Etisalat and Du on the trial, with the aim of achieving
10Gbps download speeds using 400MHz of spectrum in the 6GHz
range. The TDRA’s Director General, Majed Sultan al-Mesmar, com-
mented: ‘The exponential number of internet users, and the scien-
tific advances witnessed by the world today, require new speeds
to accommodate the increasing load on networks and keep up
with the high specifications of emerging technologies on the world
stage such as metaverse applications, to name a few. Having
attained a speed of 10Gbps … this new, globally unprecedented
speed will lead to faster data transfer, ushering in a new era of
high-quality streaming and seamless cloud services. The trial will
also enhance the IoT by providing the infrastructure necessary to
simultaneously handle multiple connected devices, while ensuring
seamless and reliable connectivity.’

PTA and UNESCO Collaborate to Formulate a Digital Gender Inclusion Strategy

For a long time, the national telecom regulator Pakistan Lahore, Peshawar, and Quetta. The strategy will be unveiled after
Telecommunication Authority has been striving to minimize the receiving validation from stakeholders.
digital gender gap in the country. To further strengthen its efforts
in this regard, PTA is in collaboration with UNESCO to formulate a
“Digital Gender Inclusion Strategy.” The main goal of the strategy
is to enhance the use of the internet, cell phones, and digital
skills among females. It is also in line with the guidelines of the
International Telecommunication Union (ITU) 2030. Furthermore,
the strategy proposes actions and measures for PTA and its core
partners to enhance women’s digital access, connectivity, and
affordability. Through this plan, PTA along with its collaborators
aims to foster collaboration and bridge the digital gender gap in
Pakistan. It is pertinent to mention here that back in 2022, PTA
started the process of data collection and analysis. This involved
expert surveys by national and international digital/gender experts,
physical surveys targeting the unconnected population, and IVR
surveys for mobile users. PTA also organized workshops in Karachi,

50 JULY-AUGUST 2023