Phl lags behind in telco infra spending in Asean

The Philippines is lagging behind its ASEAN peers in rolling out critical infrastructure for telecommunications, with the National Broadband Plan still waiting to take off, an independent think tank said.

In a statement, Stratbase Albert del Rosario Institute (ADRi) president Dindo Manhit said the implementation of the National Broadband Plan should be prioritized as a critical infrastructure project in the government loan portfolio that would generate long term benefits to public and private ecosystems.

“This is critical in meeting the increasing demand for reliable and fast broadband services needed by all sectors to sustain operations,” he said.

“This brings to front a strategic challenge that if not addressed with urgency, will negatively affect the country’s economic recovery and competitiveness in a new digital driven economy.”

According to the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2020, ASEAN governments are upgrading telecommunications infrastructure such as Malaysia spending $233 million for increasing coverage and broadband speed, Thailand is investing $343 million to connect thousands of villages, and Vietnam investing $820 million for a 23,000-kilometer submarine cable system.

On the other hand, the Department of Information and Communications Technology’s proposed P18 billion budget to implement the National Broadband Plan was only allocated less than P1.5 billion in the 2021 national budget.

“Given the region’s aggressive investments to upgrade wired and wireless networks, the Philippine government should take the cue from its ASEAN neighbors who are already investing aggressively to boost broadband services to world class levels, ” Manhit said.

The government has already imposed a 15-day timeline for issuance of tower permits to address the 50,000-backlog seen as a major cause of congestion slowing down internet services.

In response, the country’s two dominant telecommunications players are ramping up infrastructure spending to enhance and expand services.

“While the new sites will need time to be built and fired up, the recent unimpeded permitting process has proven to be the much-needed catalyst for the telco industry. Improving the country’s state of connectivity and internet speed is a continuing effort that requires both public and private sector support,” Globe Telecom president and CEO Ernest Cu said.