ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered the doubling of all key digital economy targets, including mobile-based payments, QR code adoption, and overall transaction volumes, as part of Pakistan’s push to accelerate its transition to a cashless economy, his office said on Thursday.

The directive comes as authorities aim to increase mobile payment users from 95 million to 120 million, and QR code-enabled merchants from 0.9 million to 2 million. The total value of digital transactions is expected to rise from Rs7.5 billion ($26.9 million) to Rs12 billion ($43 million), according to figures shared in a meeting chaired by Sharif on Thursday. A statement released after the discussions did not provide a timeline for meeting these targets.

Sharif said the targets were not ambitious enough and must be doubled across the board to match the scale of Pakistan’s digital transformation agenda.

“A digital transaction system is essential for bringing transparency to the economy,” Sharif said. “It is an urgent need of the hour to ease payments between citizens and businesses and raise awareness about the use of digital systems.”

Pakistan, a country of over 240 million people, has a vast informal economy and low tax compliance. The government has long identified digitization as a key tool to improve governance, reduce corruption, and expand the country’s narrow tax base.

Three committees — the Digital Payments Innovation and Adoption Committee, the Digital Public Infrastructure Committee, and the Government Payments Committee — have already been formed to oversee the transition. 

At Thursday’s meeting, Sharif directed the bodies to present “workable proposals in collaboration with all stakeholders,” the statement said.

The State Bank of Pakistan is developing strategies to simplify digital transactions for traders, including special incentive packages for small businesses. The government also plans to expand the use of digital mobile apps and improve access to digital public infrastructure.

Sharif was also briefed on new services set to launch soon, including e-stamping, as well as public Wi-Fi expansion across hospitals, schools, parks, government offices and metro lines in Islamabad.

He instructed officials to roll out these facilities across all federal territories, as well as Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.