CONVERGE GETS TAX PERKS FOR FIBER ROLLOUT PROJECT

Converge ICT Solutions Inc. was given incentives, including four years of income tax holiday, by the government for its fiber rollout project aimed at providing high-speed broadband services in unserved and underserved areas of the country.

The listed internet service provider said that the project covers the expansion of its fiber-to-the-home infrastructure to over 1,200 municipalities, which is still subject to regulatory approval.

Converge explained that its nationwide fiber broadband rollout was tagged as a strategic service in the telecommunications sector in the 2020 Investments Priorities Plan.

The granted income tax holiday, it noted, would be followed by five years of enhanced deductions or special corporate income tax. In addition, the Fiscal Incentives Review Board also gave Converge 11 years of duty-free importation of capital equipment, raw materials, spare parts or accessories.

“We’re glad that the government appreciates the cutting-edge technology we will be using to bring broadband connection to underdeveloped areas. We’ve always believed that connectivity is a right, not a privilege of a few,” Converge CEO and co-founder Dennis Anthony Uy said.

Apart from increasing access to internet connectivity, Uy said that the multiyear project would be able to bring about direct and indirect jobs as well.

“There is no shortage of talent among Filipinos and we look forward to the opportunities that this project will open up for our countrymen, especially in the rural areas,” he said.