Slow internet speed will continue for next three months: P@sha

Chairman of Pakistan Software Association (P@sha) Sajjad Syed explained that internet speed problems would take longer to resolve due to complications in fixing a firewall.

“Firewall is installed everywhere around the world, probably there is something wrong with the installation method in Pakistan,” he said while expressing concerns over the slow speed of the internet.

He claimed that full-time IT workers were not experiencing any issues, adding that only part-time IT workers and domestic consumers were facing problems with fixed-line connections.

Although internet disruption was producing troubles for online businesses and freelancers, Mr Sajjad saw the installation of the wall as a good effort to control misinformation and disinformation. 

He cited the US, where, according to him, people who share inappropriate content are captured within 24 hours.

Mr Sajjad also dismissed the information regarding the shifting of IT business outside Pakistan.

However, Pakistan went offline in May 2022, around the time of mass political protests, and blackouts have since persisted, prompting services like freelance gig platform Fiverr to warn clients that hiring members from Pakistan could mean potential disruptions.

However, freelancers have had a hard time of it since the August 2024 introduction of what appears to be a new firewall.