The Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication has called for the development of a Pakistani messaging and communication app for official use, with the Ministry of IT telling lawmakers that work on a national Super App is already under way.
The proposal came during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication chaired by Senator Palwasha Mohammad Zai Khan. Lawmakers discussed recent concerns over data leaks, the use of foreign messaging platforms for official communication and the need to keep sensitive government data within Pakistan.
During the meeting, members said Pakistan should develop its own national applications so that sensitive information could be stored and handled through local systems. They raised concerns that data placed on international applications could potentially be accessed through foreign systems or backdoor channels.
The Ministry of IT told the committee that a local application called BEEP is already being used for official business instead of platforms such as WhatsApp and Zoom. Officials said BEEP is being used for official communication and data protection.
The ministry also informed the committee that the Central Development Working Party has approved a project to procure secure phones for high ranking government officials and parliamentarians. Officials said the secure phones are expected to support a complete move away from WhatsApp for official communication, with BEEP and e office systems being used instead.
Senator Dr. Afnan Ullah Khan said secure messaging should be prioritized because large amounts of official information are shared through messaging platforms. One proposal was to develop a national messaging application through a group of Pakistani private companies rather than giving the entire project to one company.
The committee suggested that four or five Pakistani companies could work together through a tender so that no single company gets a monopoly over the proposed system. Members also suggested involving Ignite, the National Technology Fund, to support local technology companies and entrepreneurs in developing the application.
Lawmakers also discussed making the proposed application much larger than a messaging platform. The idea of a Pakistani Super App was discussed, with possible services including messaging, ride hailing, food delivery and other digital services.
Officials told the committee that work on a Super App is already under way. The proposed system is also expected to connect with Pak ID, allowing a person’s important digital information such as educational degrees, national identity records and passports to be stored in a protected digital vault.
The proposed system could also include a single digital identity through which citizens could access different services rather than using separate systems for documents such as the CNIC and driving licence.
Senators also questioned the amount of money being spent on the digital projects and referred during the meeting to figures of $74 million for BEEP and $20 million for the Super App. Officials said the projects were being worked on and agreed to provide a detailed briefing on their progress.
The committee directed the Ministry of IT and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority to bring a detailed presentation on the local messaging application and the proposed Super App at the next meeting. Members also asked officials to explain what has already been developed, where the projects currently stand and what is planned for the future.
The committee was also informed that highly sensitive institutions in Pakistan have already stopped using WhatsApp for official communication. Officials said the existing BEEP system can support voice calls, file sharing and other basic communication needs.
