Microsoft has announced it will close its direct operations in Pakistan, marking the end of its 25-year presence in the country. The company will now serve Pakistani customers through resellers and nearby Microsoft offices in other regions.
In a statement, Microsoft emphasized that customer agreements and service levels will remain unaffected by this operational change. This reseller model is already in place in several other countries worldwide. Sources indicate that the closure affects five employees in Pakistan and that Microsoft did not maintain engineering teams locally, instead focusing on selling Azure and Office products.
Broader Company Restructuring
The move aligns with Microsoft’s global restructuring efforts, including recent job cuts of approximately 9,000 roles, representing 4% of its workforce. Pakistan’s Ministry of IT and Telecommunication described the exit as part of a larger workforce optimization program. Over recent years, Microsoft shifted licensing and contract management for Pakistan to its European hub in Ireland, with local certified partners handling daily service delivery.
The ministry stressed its commitment to working with Microsoft’s regional and global leadership to maintain strong support for Pakistani customers, developers, and partners.
Jawwad Rehman, Microsoft’s former executive and first lead in Pakistan, publicly reflected on the exit as a sobering sign of the country’s business environment, suggesting it is increasingly unsustainable for global giants to operate locally. This sentiment underscores concerns about the country’s tech ecosystem and challenges in attracting and retaining major multinational tech firms.
This development contrasts with Google’s continued investment in Pakistan’s tech sector, including a $10.5 million commitment to public education and plans to manufacture 500,000 Chromebooks by 2026. Meanwhile, Pakistan’s IT sector remains dominated by local firms and Chinese technology companies like Huawei, which have captured significant market share in infrastructure and enterprise services.
What The Author Thinks
Microsoft’s exit should serve as a wake-up call for Pakistan. While the country boasts a growing number of tech startups and local companies, the lack of a robust engineering outsourcing base and challenges in creating an attractive environment for global tech giants are holding it back. Without decisive reforms and infrastructure investment, Pakistan risks falling behind regional competitors like India and China, losing out on the benefits that come from hosting major international technology players.
Featured image credit: Heute
For more stories like it, click the +Follow button at the top of this page to follow us.