Public-Private Partnership schemes are being considered to speed up the development of broadband Internet services which is a perennial problem due to their high cost and slow services compared with those among the country’s neighbors.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. seeks PPPs with the private sector to expand and upgrade Internet connectivity.
The Office of the President, in a social media post, said Marcos convened a meeting with Converge ICT Solutions Inc. chief executive officer Dennis Anthony Uy and KT Corp. CEO Hyeon-Mo Ku and president Kyoung-Lim to discuss his administration’s bid for digital transformation and improved Internet services.
“President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. met with several telecom executives to hear their recommendations on accelerating digital transformation and improving interconnectivity in the Philippines,” the OP said.
During a meeting held at Malacañang Palace in Manila, Converge and KT executives’ recommendations to fast-track the shift to digitalization and enhance Internet connection.
Marcos, in a separate social media post, recognized that pursuing partnerships with the private sector would be advantageous to the government in its digital transformation journey.
Expertise abounds
“We met with the CEO of Converge ICT and the official of KT Corporation of South Korea to improve internet services,” Marcos said.
“With Public-Private Partnerships such as this, we can benefit from private expertise on the programs that we seek to implement,” he added.
The President is pushing for modernizing government services through the use of digital technologies and helping Filipinos participate in the digital community.
The Marcos administration has started installing Internet sites in three remote islands in the country.
The Department of Information and Communications Technology has rolled out the “BroadBand ng Masa Project” in more geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas.
DICT Secretary Ivan John Uy earlier reported that the department provided free WiFi connections to the islands of Sacol, Pangapuyan, and Tictabon in the southern part of Mindanao.
Uy is optimistic that once US-based Starlink is launched commercially in the Philippines likely before the year ends, the installation of free WiFi hubs will be quicker.
Starlink is a satellite-based internet service provider owned by American billionaire Elon Musk.