USF Board green-lights 10 mobile broadband, OFC projects

Islamabad: The Universal Service Fund (USF) Board approved the award of 10 contracts worth around Rs21 billion for the unserved and underserved communities of Balochistan, Punjab, Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) provinces, an official statement said on Saturday.

The high-speed mobile broadband projects, highways and motorways projects and optical fiber cable (OFC) projects will provide 4G LTE connectivity and backhaul connectivity to around 3.5 million people by connecting 187 Union Councils (UCs) with 1,554 km of OFC and provide seamless connectivity to 622 km of unserved road segments on M-8 motorway and N-35 highway.

A decision to this effect was taken at the 83rd Board of Directors meeting of USF at the USF Office.

The Additional Secretary (Incharge) for Ministry of Information Technology (IT) & Telecommunication and Chairman USF Board, Mohsin Mushtaq Chandna chaired the meeting.

While congratulating the USF Board on the launch of 10 projects, the Federal Minister for Ministry of IT & Telecommunication, Syed Amin Ul Haque, in his message, said, “Ministry of IT and Telecommunication through USF has taken another concrete step to fulfil the vision of Digital Pakistan. We are on the path of ‘Meaningful Connectivity and Smart Phone for All Policy’. These projects will enhance social equality, employment opportunities, and digital literacy for people of the un-served and under-served areas and strengthen the foundations of our digital infrastructure. I am proud to say that we are the front-runners in creating information rich communities and accelerating socio-economic growth in the country.”

Additional Secretary Mohsin Mushtaq Chandna said, “Under the leadership of Federal Minister, Syed Amin Ul Haque, USF has delivered a record productive performance in the past four years by contracting 79 projects worth approximately Rs62.7 billion in subsidy. This is a testament to our absolute commitment to improving the lives and the livelihoods of the unserved and underserved communities of Pakistan.”

He also highlighted the importance of infrastructure, affordability, and accessibility of the internet and pledged to work with all stakeholders to achieve the vision of Digital Pakistan.

The Chief Executive Officer of USF, Haaris Mahmood Chaudhary, apprised the Board members about the progress of the current projects and the restoration of the flood-affected USF network and said, “These projects will empower around 3.3 million people living in far-flung and backward areas across Pakistan, enabling them to access e-services across various spheres, ranging from financial services like banking and loans to accessibility towards various government services and benefits.”

According to the details, the Board approved the award of five high-speed mobile broadband contracts worth over Rs7.1 billion for providing 4G LTE services in the rural and remote districts of Punjab, Sindh, and Balochistan.

These projects will benefit people living in 262 unserved muazas of Dera Ghazi Khan, Layyah, Muzaffargarh, Multan and Rajanpur districts in Punjab; Jamshoro in Sindh; and Barkhan, Musakhel, Sherani and Sibi in Balochistan; thereby covering an approximate unserved area of 12,784.91 sq-km.

Furthermore, the Board also okayed the award of two high-speed mobile broadband projects for National Highways and Motorways worth Rs6 billion for providing 4G LTE services to commuters on unserved road segments of 622.68 km on M-8 motorway and N-35 highway respectively. Similarly, the USF

Board also gave go-ahead to award of three OFC projects worth Rs7.7 billion for providing backhaul connectivity to 187 Union Councils (UCs) of Punjab and KPK. Under these projects, USF will deploy a total of 1,554 km of OFC that will benefit over 3.3 million people in the districts of Attock, Sheikhupura and Nankana Sahib in Punjab and Bannu and Lakki Marwat in KPK.

These projects are designed to connect 684 educational institutions, 223 government offices and 268 health institutions along with mandatory connectivity of 408 BTS towers.