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The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) will incentivise international payment gateways to promote information technology sector exports, freelancing, and the digital economy. "The SBP is already offering incentives, while more are in the pipeline to facilitate international payment gateways, and to advance digital Pakistan moto by increasing IT sector exports," said Shoaib Ahmad Siddiqui, Secretary Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication, while briefing the Senate Standing Committee on IT and Telecom.

The committee met with Rubina Khalid in the chair here on Tuesday, where Siddiqui said that the government had flouted Expression of Interest (EoI) for bringing international payment gateway to promote advance systems of electronic and digital money transactions.

However, the committee chairperson asked how digital economy could be promoted when the government had made access to mobile phones difficult for the common man by imposing taxes on imports, especially when there were no manufacturing plants in the country.

The secretary said that the IT and the IT enabled services (ITeS) export had surged to $550.503 million at a growth rate of 24.71 percent during the first six months of the fiscal year 2019-2020 (July-December), compared to $441.435 million during the same period last year.

The committee expressed serious concerns over not sharing of "the Citizens Protection against Online Harm Rules, 2020" by the MoITT and passed by the cabinet.

Rubina Khalid said that despite the regular reminders, the ministry did not bother, and passed the rules.

Siddiqui said that rules were passed by the cabinet without violation of any regulations.

He further said that legislation was being done by the Parliament where it was the prerogative of the government to formulate rules.

The secretary said that the prime minister had directed broad-based consultations with all the stakeholders on the implementation of rules.

He said that those rules were intended to protect honour and integrity of the individual, the State and its institutions.

It intends to protect innocent people from online harm, stopping people from hurting others religious feelings and to protect the vulnerable segments of the society and to help maintain order, the secretary said.

Appropriate review and appeal remedies have also been provided in the rules, he said.

The secretary said the government had decided to carry out due consultation with the relevant stakeholders for addressing their concerns and to allay their fears, which might not be based on correct presumptions.

The committee asked for a written response from the ministry on "the Citizens Protection against Online Harm Rules, 2020" in the next meeting.

Senator Faisal Javed said that the rules needed to be further tightened to control misuse of the social media in the country.

He said that blackmailing, bank frauds, and harassment should also be covered under the regulations.

Javed said that criminal elements had been misusing social media by posting immoral videos of children.

Rubina criticized the ministry for signing off the laws without bringing them to the Parliament to seek its approval.

She questioned why was the committee bypassed by the government?

Had the regulations been brought to the Senate, they would have put forth their recommendations in this regard, Rubina said.

The Information Technology secretary said that they could not think of belittling the esteemed house.

He said that he would furnish a written reply in that regard later.

Senator Dr Shahzad Wasim said that the legislation was made in the Parliament but the rules were not forbidden to be brought to the committees, and committees had the right to see those rules to ensure that they were not against the legislation.

The committee observed that the legislation was made in 2016 but rules could not be framed for four years, but when rules were framed, the committee was bypassed.

Javed recommended that the government should give incentives to bloggers. Senator Fida Muhammad said that a fake ID of Senator Usman Khan Kakar had been made and should be investigated.

Senator Wasim said that some tower companies were not following the rules and regulations and had posted non-engineering people at the posts of engineers.

He also said that the market was flooded with

sub-standard mobile phones and it needed to be investigated.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020

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