Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Pakistani businesses say internet disruptions this month have harmed their businesses and unsettled investors at a time when the country is counting on the information technology sector to help break a cycle of economic crises and bailouts.The warnings from executives, investors and a leading IT organisation come as internet watchdogs have reported a marked slowdown in connection speeds and service interruptions to applications such as WhatsApp, the Meta-owned messaging platform that is widely used in the country.Nadeem Elahi, managing director for TRG, a venture capital firm that operates Pakistan’s biggest outsourcing services provider, said internet connectivity was “by far the worst it has been in the last 12 months”.“If we want to be a global business processing operation destination, then 100 per cent reliable connectivity is essential for customers,” he said, estimating that the quality of connection had degraded by 30 to 40 per cent.Technology is one of Pakistan’s few standout sectors, and Islamabad is relying on software developers and IT freelancers to help lift the country out of a chronic foreign exchange rut that has sent it to the IMF for support two dozen times. IT exports rose 24 per cent to $3.2bn, an all-time high, in the 12 months to the end of June, according to the State Bank of Pakistan. Kalsoom Lakhani, co-founder of i2i Ventures, a Pakistan-focused venture capital fund, said internet slowdowns were hurting the “perception of the market”.“Platform bans and internet slowdowns, especially because the reasons behind them feel unclear and draconian, add to this uncertainty and further make the case that Pakistani start-ups are a riskier bet,” she said.“How can you invest in tech start-ups in a market where digital access is so often throttled?” she added, lamenting that investment had dried to a trickle from three years ago, before Pakistan’s latest bout of economic crisis and political instability.Internet users in Pakistan have reported slower speeds and problems sending photos, videos and other content on WhatsApp over mobile networks since mid-August. Authorities were already blocking access to messaging platform Telegram and social media site X over national security concerns.Digital rights activists believe the disruption is due to the government installing “firewall” technology to filter content. “Our understanding is that the technology is being supplied by a foreign government company,” said Usama Khilji, director of Bolo Bhi, a digital rights organisation.Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government has denied responsibility, with officials variously blaming slow speeds on a faulty undersea cable, a cyber attack and the overuse of virtual private networks to skirt restrictions on some social media platforms.However, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, minister of information technology, confirmed in a press conference this month that the government was working to upgrade its web management system, aimed at protecting Pakistan from “cyber security attacks”.When asked by the Financial Times this week, Muhammad Aurangzeb, Pakistan’s finance minister, acknowledged there might be “temporary hiccups” in internet service.Business figures said government efforts to impose internet filters could also expose companies with operations in Pakistan to legal compliance issues.“If data is being sniffed into at any level . . . there are millions of dollars of potential liabilities on IT firms that do business with the west,” said Ali Ihsan, senior vice chair of P@sha, an IT association that represents about 800 companies in Pakistan, citing European data protection regulations.P@sha estimates that the internet disruption in recent weeks had inflicted $300mn in economic damage, including reputational losses and lost future business.The outcry from industry comes on top of long-standing accusations from rights activists and opposition politicians of state censorship of online activism, particularly criticism of the military’s role in politics.“If you are slowing down the internet, according to UN resolutions, you are violating a fundamental human right,” said Nighat Dad, a technology and human rights activist. “We are talking about constitutional rights, accessibility and transparency.”
