“The suspension of DCB puts the IT sector at jeopardy.”
Key stakeholders believe that the decision made by the SBP will decrease trust and investment flows.
ISLAMABAD: The possibilities of information technology (IT) in Pakistan are likely to be put in jeopardy as a result of the suspension of direct carrier billing (DCB). This comes at a time when the government plans to implement 5G technology in the following year.
In the meantime, the government is working toward the goal of generating billions of dollars in revenue through the rollout of 5G technology in Pakistan as well as the auctioning of more spectrum. The Ministry of Information Technology is currently in the middle of negotiations with a number of the largest technology corporations in the world over the establishment of their operations in the country.
The suspension of DCB, the method that is most commonly used to acquire mobile applications from the Google Play Store, is said to have far-reaching ramifications for the digital ecosystem by key stakeholders in the information and communications technology industry. According to what they said, this will also damage Pakistan’s credibility in the international community.
This action will also have an effect on Pakistan’s global ranking in the DCB Index, which is managed by Evina. At the present time, Evina recognises Pakistan as a “rare gem, based on its DCB potential, in the Middle East and African region with a relatively high volume of smartphone penetration and limited bank payment alternatives.”
At the beginning of this month, Google informed a number of different telecom firms that it would be terminating its participation in DCB beginning on December 1. Many overdue payments remained unresolved because the central bank in September established restrictions on the amount of foreign currency that could be traded.
Stakeholders in the field of information and communications technology from all around the country have come forward to request that the central bank reconsider its decision.
During an interview with the media, the Chairman of the Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA), Zohaib Khan, stated that “the worldwide firms which have operations in Pakistan are losing their trust in the country for withholding their payments.”
“How will our exports expand if these challenges are not resolved?” he said, adding that “while Pakistan is struggling to overcome an economic crisis, information technology and information technology-enabled services have the ability to stabilise the country’s economy.”
He pleaded with the government to get rid of these kinds of roadblocks and make it possible for technology businesses to pay and receive funds without restriction.
Dr. Arslan Khalid, Minister of Information Technology for the Punjab, was of the opinion that the decision made by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) might be “a significant blow to the embryonic IT industry currently struggling to take off.”
He stated that as a result of this, the future of information technology in Pakistan is likely to be put in jeopardy, and the harm that would be caused will be catastrophic and long-lasting.
“If the SBP’s decision to revoke the $34 million payment to international service providers is not revised, then international companies will take Pakistan off their radars when making IT investments, which will lead to job loss and a severe trust deficit that will take a very long time to heal,” Khalid warned. “This severe trust deficit will take a very long time to heal.”
In a tweet, Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA), Asad Ali Shah, who is considered to be one of the most prominent professionals in the country and who is very well-known and respected in all key business and government circles, referred to the move as “devastating for the digital economy in Pakistan” and urged the relevant stakeholders to quickly find a solution to the problem.
According to an international telecom expert named Parvez Iftikhar, who issued a dire warning about the far-reaching implications of his statement, “The shutdown of app payments will also affect telecom operators, causing a decline in data consumption. It will impact their traffic, and it may even stagnate growth in data usage.” It is possible that the suspension of these services may have a negative impact on the income of Pakistani app developers as well.
