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ARTICLE (June 09 2010): These are times of a near economic meltdown. Crunch time has seen many indicators falling like nine pins. People and organisations with money are few and far between, and are not willing to part with their wealth in the turbulent climate.

How then the bold do and the brave fare by assessing risks and wresting the initiative through making opportunities of what most others consider to be risky propositions? The booming telecom sector in Pakistan is a case in point. The country's economic scenario and potential paints a different picture when one reviews the numbers achieved by the Telco's here.

While even local investors are shy of taking risks, citing the uncertain policies and unsettled law and order situation, this one sector has shown to all others that cowering back and holding on to the existing wealth will certainly not allow for its multiplication. All existing telecom companies have continued to launch aggressive plans to generate maximised revenues from a market that has achieved 70% penetration and an overall customer profile of up to 95% cellular users. They see and review market dynamics from a different perspective.

The global telecom companies have in essence become local through their large-scale investments in infrastructure, technology; human resource, business models and social sector interaction - the numbers are there for all to see. One single company for instance, Mobilink, which has had its Standard and Poor's rating upped to 'B-' with a stable outlook and with continuing investments and strong successful brands has managed to lead from the front to tell a softer story of Pakistan's economic potential. The company has a 31 million mark in subscriber base, with a footprint of over 10,000 locations across Pakistan.

Despite the fact that the market is fast approaching a saturation point, Mobilink is planning to pump more than $250 million in the year 2010 alone. This will bring the total investment made by the company in Pakistan to over $3.5 billion, making it the largest chunk of foreign direct investment in the country by any cellular operator. On the other hand, the Norwegian giant, Telenor, has also announced aggressive investment plans along with the UAE-based, Warid, and the huge China Mobile, indicating that these telecom companies mean business in Pakistan. Broadband companies on the other hand, such as Wi-tribe, Qubee and Mobilink's Infinity are also making waves by providing speedy Internet connections to a growing stream of customers.

The confidence in the market, and its ability to capitalize on the opportunities presented by it prompted companies like Mobilink to introduce a variety of customised applications such as the popular Blackberry, which currently controls with an 80% market share. Of course, the other service providers are providing similar services, but they have not been able to dislodge it from its number one position.

The telecom sector companies have not focused on generating profits only, but they have also displayed leadership in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility by supporting efforts to minimise hardships in times of the terrible earthquake in 2005 and the IDPs issue in 2009. They are promoting female literacy through cellular technology, supporting education for the disadvantaged and spearheading youth activities in the field of sports, music, arts and entertainment.

The prophets of doom would do well to take a look at the business model being followed by the vibrant telecom sector, these companies must be doing something right to stay financially healthy, and make a positive contribution to the economy and society where they are functioning.