On September 5, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) assured Information Technology exporters that internet access will remain secure and stable despite ongoing disruptions due to submarine cable damage.
On September 5, at PTA headquarters, PTA officials met with a Pakistan IT Association (P@SHA) delegation to discuss measures to ease the impact of the internet slowdown on IT exporters. PTA Chairman Maj-Gen (retd) Hafeezur Rehman reassured the delegation that efforts to facilitate business operations for the IT sector were a priority, and plans were in place to ensure stable connectivity.
The disruptions began due to malfunctions in two submarine cables. Only one, the AAE-1, has been repaired so far. The PTA reported that the second cable, SMW-4, is expected to be fully repaired by early October. These outages have heavily affected major communication platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook, which IT companies use for business operations.
The PTA confirmed that slow internet services will persist until early October, as repairs to one of the damaged cables are underway. To support IT companies and freelancers, the PTA expedites Virtual Private Network (VPN) registrations, ensuring uninterrupted service delivery to international clients.
