ISLAMABAD – In every minute 11 Pakistanis join a cellular community, more than 430,000 SMS are sent and 160,000 calls made. Even though the cellular industry pays the highest tax, it contributes 3 percent to the country’s GDP with revenue of Rs 357.7 billion in the year 2009-10 compared to Rs 333 billion in the previous year.
According to official sources, incomes of 6 out of every 1,000 Pakistanis are dependent on the telecom industry. Half of Pakistanis including women have access to a cell phone together with rural areas (two-thirds in urban areas) while more than 86 percent of men and 40 percent of women have their own cell phone.
