Islamabad, Aug 18: Shaza Fatima, the minister of state for IT and telecom, attributed the nation’s widespread internet slowdown on the growing usage of virtual private networks, or VPNs, on Sunday.
She made an effort to reassure reporters during today’s press conference that VPNs are solely to blame and that the federal government has not purposefully slowed down or shut down the internet. According to her, using a VPN excessively might cause connections to lag by sending data across distant servers.The minister made no particular effort to discuss any developments about the recently installed national firewall that regulates social media.
She talked about the advancements made in Pakistan’s IT sector during her term in office, citing the youth as the reason for the nation’s record-breaking IT exports. The minister unveiled a number of projects, such as the construction of two new IT parks in Islamabad and Karachi, the installation of 250 e-employment centers around the country, and the start of elementary school curricula that teach coding in five different languages. According to her, plans are in place to roll out 5G technology to every citizen in the nation, add four more cables to the internet infrastructure, and create a virtual production studio.
In order to streamline payment procedures and enhance tax collection, the minister also mentioned the government’s initiatives to digitalize national databases, such as the National Database Regulatory Authority (NADRA), and to install QR codes at more than a million locations around Pakistan. Shaza was upbeat about the future and focused on using digital technologies to improve people’s lives and the economy as a whole.
