Local mobile phones production surpasses import

ISLAMABAD: The production of mobile phones by local manufacturing plants has surpassed the number of mobile phones imports in the country.

During Jan-July 2021, the production of mobile phones by local manufacturing plants was 12.27 million and imported mobile phones recorded at 8.29 million.

This trend reflects a positive uptake on PTA’s Mobile Device Manufacturing (MDM) Authorisation regulatory regime whereby local manufacturing within the first year of regime introduction has resulted in production of 12.27 million phones in a short span of seven months including 4.87 million 4G smartphones.

The successful implementation of Device Identification Registration and Blocking System (DIRBS) along with conducive government policies including the mobile manufacturing policy has created a favourable environment for mobile device manufacturing in Pakistan.

It has also contributed positively to the mobile ecosystem of Pakistan by eliminating counterfeit device market providing a level playing field for commercial entities and has created trust amongst consumers due to the formulation of standardised legal channels for all sorts of device imports.

It is important to highlight that the government of Pakistan introduced a comprehensive mobile manufacturing policy to encourage and attract manufacturers to establish their units in Pakistan. PTA in light of the policy issued Mobile Device Manufacturing (MDM) Regulations on January 28, 2021. Till now, 26 companies have been issued MDM authorisation enabling them to manufacture mobile devices in Pakistan.