Pakistan’s internet penetration stands at 54 percent during this year, with almost half accessing the facility every day.
A new study has revealed the digital population of Pakistan and the country’s internet penetration stands at 54 percent as of the year 2021.
“Out of 54%, about 76% of Pakistanis are connected to the internet in Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Islamabad,” as per the first-ever study conducted by Google and Kantar, a Karachi-based research company.
According to a statement, the ‘Journey to Digital’ research reveals that how Pakistanis consume and spend their time on the internet. The study says that 66% of internet users were based in urban areas while 47% belonged to rural areas, and 46% of all Pakistanis accessed the internet every day.
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Males, Generation-Z (people born from 1995 to 2010) and employees are significantly more likely to be connecting to the internet.
“Majority of non-internet users simply didn’t have the means to access the internet as they know about the internet but they can’t get onto it because they didn’t have an internet-enabled device or a reliable internet connection,” the report said.
Internet penetration surged during Covid-19 pandemic
Furthermore, the internet usage surged due to Covid-19, it added that before the lockdown, there were around 79% of internet users in urban locations accessing the internet daily, which increased by 10% since the lockdowns.
YouTube is used by nearly 90% of all internet users, was the most popular application in Pakistan for streaming music and watching video/TV, whereas, 38% Pakistan’s internet users went to YouTube in the research phase of their shopping journey.
However, Google Search is one of top five applications/websites used in Pakistan and widely used when researching and purchasing products online as well as travel, for information needs and even entertainment.
The report says, “The reasons for turning to e-commerce are manifold, 71% of Pakistani shoppers find purchasing products or services online easy while 66% find it convenient, 54% agree that online shopping websites or apps give personalized product recommendations, which is a common task from shoppers.”
