By Abdul Ghani

The federal government has proposed a new sovereign mobile communication project for officials to enhance digital sovereignty, strengthen cybersecurity infrastructure and secure official communications against evolving cyber threats, according to a document available with Wealth Pakistan.

The project – Pakawaaz Secure Mobile Communication Ecosystem – has an estimated cost of Rs708.71 million. It has been included among ongoing public sector development initiatives for FY2026-27, with an initial allocation of Rs100 million proposed for the upcoming fiscal year. The project is expected to be completed within 12 months once formally approved by the Central Development Working Party (CDWP).

The initiative seeks to create a sovereign and secure mobile communication ecosystem for government users by deploying a private cellular network isolated from public communication infrastructure. The proposed system will incorporate centralised multi-factor authentication using user credentials, SIM verification and device authentication to strengthen cybersecurity safeguards.

Under the project, the government plans to develop a dedicated secure communication platform capable of providing end-to-end encrypted voice and video calls, secure messaging and protected file-sharing services. The platform will be supported by dedicated administration and network operations systems and hosted at the National Telecommunication Corporation (NTC) Data Centre.

The project also envisages the provision of 10,000 hardened mobile devices featuring hardware-based security architecture and a locally developed hardened operating system. The move will reduce dependence on foreign communication platforms for sensitive government communications.

In addition, the initiative includes the establishment of sovereign software development environments, a secure chat application, controlled digital directories and a private application store to facilitate the secure delivery of government applications, including e-office services.

The government expects the project to play a key role in building a secure national communication framework for public institutions once regulatory and development approvals are obtained.

Credit: INP-WealthPk