Marcos lauds Converge, Keppel subsea cable system

MANILA, Philippines — Internet connectivity in the country is expected to improve significantly with the first subsea cable system project between Converge and Singapore-based Keppel Telecommunications and Transportation Inc., President Marcos said.

Marcos made the remark after his meeting with Converge founder and chief executive officer Dennis Anthony Uy and proponent partner Thomas Pang Thieng Hwi, CEO and executive director of Keppel Telecommunications and Transportation Inc. at Malacañang.

“I just finished a meeting with the Converge group who have tied up with the Keppel group to put in a submarine fiber optic cable from the west coast of the United States; it will connect to the Philippines and it will also connect to Singapore and Indonesia and this will again give us bigger bandwidth,” the President said in a video message released by the Presidential Communications Office.

“This will give us a better communication system when it comes to all the online services that we are using globally,” President Marcos said.

The Bifrost Cable System Project, a joint undertaking of Converge and Keppel T&T, would include the Philippines in its fiber optic cable coming from the west coast of the United States.

“So it will increase our bandwidth and speed up internet,” the President said, noting this project was a “fruit” of his visit to Singapore.

Marcos was in Singapore in September last year for a state visit.

The Bifrost Cable System Project is the world’s first subsea cable system that directly connects Singapore to the west coast of North America, passing through Indonesia, Philippines and Guam.

Meanwhile, the President also convened Tuesday for the first time the National Innovation Council (NIC), which serves as the government’s main coordinating body for innovation policies.

During the meeting at Malacañang, the NIC, which is chaired by the President, approved six executive members for 2023 to 2026, with the seventh slot to be filled by a climate change expert.

The secretary of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) serves as acting as vice-chairperson of the council.