Internet breakthroughs and barriers

Just as the 5th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Digital Minister’s Meeting hosted by Thailand ended a few days ago, I am taking this opportunity to discuss notable breakthroughs letting us slowly but steadily achieve universal, uninterrupted and free internet in the Philippines.

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) now has greater capacity to fulfill the vision of the Free Internet Access in Public Places Act (RA 10929) through the tripling of its budget from P2.5 billion to P7.5 billion. Apart from maintaining free internet connection to over 13,000 existing access sites across the country (e.g., schools, public buildings), the additional funding for the Free Wifi For All program lets the DICT expand to more sites and reach rural marginalized areas and geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDAs). Over 25 million Filipinos in 7,000 barangays are in GIDAs. As of June 2024, DICT’s program has directly benefitted eight million Filipinos in isolated barangays. 2025’s tripled budget should see an encouraging uptick in beneficiaries and more Filipinos having an easier time connecting to the internet, whether it be for entertainment, health, school or work.

Considerable funding in the aggregate amount of around $1.05 billion (P61.5 billion) from the World Bank is a veritable vote of confidence and a boost to our internet endeavors. It consists of a $288-million (P16.87 billion) loan approved in October 2024 for the Philippines’ Digital Infrastructure Project (PDIP) and a $750-million (P43.93) loan approved in November 2024 for the Philippine Second Digital Transformation Development Policy Loans Project (DPL). PDIP aims to establish climate resilient, secure and inclusive broadband connectivity infrastructure throughout the Philippines, from the foundational “national backbone” to the “last mile.” It includes our National Fiber Backbone (NFB) Project, which is a government-owned fiber cable network of an initial 28,000 kilometers from Laoag, Ilocos Norte to Roces, Quezon City, connecting 14 provinces including four ecozones and two national government data centers for its first phase.

With four more phases in the pipeline, it seeks to increase Philippine household fixed broadband penetration rate from the current 33 percent to at least 65 percent by 2026. As DICT Secretary Ivan John Uy underscored, there are areas in Mindanao where penetration rate barely reaches 10 percent that must improve. NFB would also allow 346 national and local government offices connected to GovNet to heighten operational efficiency, saving taxpayers an estimated P145 million annually.

The DPL, on the other hand, should foster an enabling policy environment for greater digital technology adoption through competition, infrastructure and digital finance initiatives. It would contribute to the projected growth of the Philippine digital economy from P2.08 trillion (a considerable 9.4 percent of gross domestic product) in 2022 to P5 trillion by 2030.

At the moment, NEDA itself has admitted that the fixed broadband penetration rate in households of 33 percent is “alarmingly low.” It is also painful for pockets. A mere 5 GB data package costs about 11.6 percent of gross national income (GNI) per capita for fixed broadband. In comparison, China is a mere 0.5 percent, Singapore 0.8 percent and both Vietnam and Thailand at 3.5 percent. While our mobile broadband is at 2 percent of GNI per capita, it is still 1.5 times more expensive than our neighbors. It is thus out of reach for the lowest income households, who frustratingly have most to gain from internet access, knowledge and skills.

With Senator Grace Poe’s landmark law, the Revised Public Service Act or Republic Act 11659 allowing full foreign ownership (subject to reciprocity) in the telecommunications sector, we ought to partner with our better internet equipped neighbors, technological disruptors and ICT innovators to bring world-class ICT at the fingertips of every Filipino. Elon Musk’s Starlink already serves the Philippines, particularly to a previously underserved area like Pag-asa Island, which is at the forefront of asserting our sovereignty and promoting our national defense.

We reiterate that Senator Poe’s advocacy to revolutionize our public services paradigm requires a comprehensive series of interventions and collaborative stakeholders to truly revamp our information infrastructure architecture. Despite transformative legislation, so much work is still required, including the proper implementation and/or passage of Senate Bill No. (SBN) 1695 filed on Feb. 14, 2018 and SBN 1749 filed on March 19, 2018 passed into law as Republic Act No. 11311 that brought (or ought to be bringing) free internet in transportation terminals, stations, stops, rest areas and RORO terminals; the E-Government Services Act of 2020 or SBN 1683 filed on July 13, 2020; Better Internet Act or SBN 329 filed on July 12, 2022; Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Act or SBN 863 filed on July 25, 2022 and the Open Access in Internet Services Act or SBN 864 filed on July 25, 2022.

We have begun owning up to the truth that the Philippines has horribly under-invested in broadband infrastructure compared to the rest of the world. For the last 15 years, about a hundred developing countries invested approximately one percent of their gross domestic product in telecom infrastructure for at least a year. The Philippines, in comparison, has never made the same investment. It is a severe shortfall that must be addressed; otherwise, significant portions of the Filipino population shall be stuck in the 20th century with inequality all the starker. We will be holding ourselves back, erecting our own barriers and preventing genuine breakthroughs. If we truly want a Digital Philippines to bridge our barangays and build digital pathways to our collective prosperity, then it is high time to change the system. It’s time to mind and mend the gaps that cause the digital divide and bring better internet to the Filipino people.