Facebook partners with Nayatel for fibre network, to improve connectivity issues in Pakistan
In its first-ever investment in Pakistan, Facebook has partnered with Nayatel to improve and expand connectivity across the country. Under this partnership, Nayatel will own, build, maintain, and operate a new fiber network and provide wholesale capacity to mobile operators and ISPs while Facebook will invest in the fiber build and support network planning.
This high-speed fiber will connect thousands of sites by 2022, and improve the capacity and geographical reach of the internet to 10 to 15 million people across eight major cities in Pakistan. High speed, reliable, and affordable broadband has become a basic household necessity mainly in wake of Covid-19 lockdowns.
Under the partnership, Nayatel will deploy new fiber networks to serve as a backbone infrastructure for 4G/5G mobile and fixed broadband, which is a key driver of economic growth and job creation. By investing and supporting the building of networks, Facebook is helping operators leverage fiber infrastructure to improve access to affordable broadband.
This initiative is the first of its kind for Facebook in Pakistan and represents a broader strategy of investing in the country and improving connectivity in the region. In a statement, Head of Connectivity and Access Policy, Asia Pacific, Facebook, Tom Varghese said the partnership with Nayatel is part of efforts to bring fast and reliable internet connectivity to people around the world, including in Pakistan.
