A report by the web testing and diagnostics company Ookla – known for their internet speed tests – has indicated that Pakistan’s broadband and mobile internet speeds ranked among the world’s lowest 10 percent, as of October 2024. According to Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index, Pakistan ranked 100 out of 111 in regards to mobile internet speeds, and 141 out of 158 for fixed broadband speeds. While the global median mobile and fixed broadband speeds have been registered at 59.15 mbps and 94.52 mbps, respectively, Pakistan’s speeds in these two categories were at 20.61 mbps and 15.60 mbps, respectively according to the report.

These revelations have come against the backdrop of widespread concerns pertaining to persistent internet disruptions and slowdown since June 2024 particularly as Pakistan began to test and implement its controversial firewall or web management system. Such a situation continues to have a debilitating impact on the country’s nascent tech industry and growing freelance workforce, resulting in a   in work as a result.

That this snapshot of Pakistan’s slow internet speeds was captured during October is significant, as concerns and frustration with the government concerning the intermitted throttling of the internet since June 2024 threatened to come to a head in October and November, resulting in the impact on the country’s digital economy, as indicated above.