Let’s think of preparing for 6G adoption?

An interesting debate is going on in the media about the adoption of 6G. Though Pakistan has positioned itself as an early adopter by opening the 6 GHz spectrum band for unlicensed use, its focus is 5G rollout in 2025-26. 6G, which is the 6th generation cellular technology, is scheduled to be adopted by 2030 by the advanced countries who are investing heavily in this technology. It is meant to provide extraordinary support to advanced applications like augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and high-capacity industrial automation.

Now, the immediate question is: ‘Should Pakistan too start preparations for adopting it?’ The question is justified because in launching 5G, Pakistan was way behind the regional countries. Maldives launched 5G in 2019, India in 2022, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh in 2025. In Pakistan, 5G spectrum auction was held in March 2026. Although some internet service providers (ISPs) are rolling out 5G in some major cities, overall, we are still in the process of optimizing technology. In fact, most mobile subscribers are still using 3G and around 40 per cent still lack access to 4G services. Despite these limitations, a major ISP Jazz will be investing US $I billion over the next three years to connect 16 major urban centers. It secured 110 MHz of spectrum and will upgrade 5G to over 1,000 sites.

Some leading economies are heavily investing in research that will enable them to roll out 6G in the next three to four years. Should Pakistan, which is still grappling with 5G rolling out, start preparing to adopt 6G? Studies show that there are two schools of thought. According to one, starting preparation to adopt 6G straightaway will be a strategic mistake. Since we are in the process of rolling out 5G, further investment on 6G will be a waste of limited financial resources. Although the rich countries are racing towards 6G, its full-fledged commercial use is still faraway. We need to improve our infrastructure. As 5G penetration is very limited, our information technology ecosystem is also dependent on 4G. Currently, only 18 per cent of cellular towers are connected via fiber as compared to global average of 40 per cent. Rural areas still lack effective internet connectivity. Our first and foremost priority must be to do away or at least reduce the digital divide. The important question is: will the ISPs be able to save resources for investing in 6G? The war in the Middle East has put a heavy strain on the global economy. Pakistan has been badly affected by the fall out. We have adopted far-reaching austerity measures. Even after the war ends, its aftereffects will last for many more years as they happened after World War II. Therefore, instead of preparing to adopt 6G, Pakistan must first optimize the roll out of 5G, improve IT and Telecom infrastructure, and reduce the digital divide.

Another school of thought upholds the view that Pakistan must simultaneously start preliminary work on 6G, otherwise it would lag behind and face difficulties when other countries roll out 6G. Several countries like the United States, China, Finland and Japan are already investing heavily to prepare for 6G. This technology is likely to be on ground in next three to four years, which is not a long period. Therefore, Pakistan must be proactive rather than reactive in policy making, planning and preparing to adopt 6G. If it starts working towards 6G, it is likely to invite favourable investment in this technology.

When all is said and done, what is best course of action for Pakistan? Should it first concentrate on optimizing 5G by removing all obstacles, including the digital divide or spare some resources for planning and policy making for 6G? Obviously, Pakistan must not be the last country in the region to launch 6G as it was the case for 5G. The best course of action for Pakistan would be to push for effectively rolling out and optimizing 5G for various sectors. Simultaneously, for training, it should aim at planning and policy making for 6G. It should send some senior researchers to countries which are preparing for 6G for training.

For this technology, there must be a close collaboration between the government research and development (R and D) institutes, universities, and the industry (the technology triangle). Presently, the linkages between these entities and government policy making is weak. Resultantly, the work of R and D institutes and the universities is not need driven. Universities mainly indulge in basic research rather than applied research. Let us think of 6G which may revolutionize countries’ working in various fields.

(The writer is a Distinguished Advisor at the Sustainable Development Policy Institute, Islamabad. The views expressed in this article are his own and do not relate to the Institute.) _……………. boss kindly publish this article today.