Marcos eyes internet for remote communities

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to hasten efforts to establish digital connectivity in remote communities, Malacañang said Tuesday.

«Let us establish first the connectivity. That's more important than anything else,» Marcos said in a meeting with DICT representatives on the National Digital Connectivity Plan (NDCP) 2024-2028 in Malacañang on Monday.

Marcos told the DICT to focus on areas where it is economically viable to construct common towers and locations where the government can provide Wi-Fi service at the soonest possible time.

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. presides over a sectoral meeting with the agenda on the National Digital Connectivity Plan 2028 and the agenda on efforts to digitalize government services on Monday, September 9, 2024, at the State Dining Room in Malacanang Palace, Manila. Photos by Yummie Dingding / PPA Pool

He added that to ensure a market for telecommunications companies, providing digital connections to government facilities in remote areas could be included in the agenda.

«We will now provide that market by giving [access] to government facilities, barangay (village) offices, LGUs (local government units), etcetera. And that will establish the market,» the President said.

«Once the people are already used to having that service, we can put them [in] already. We can put the allowance for Wi-Fi already in the budget. We can put it in the budget of the government agency. It will not cost much,» he added.

Advertisement

«This is a crucial step toward achieving our goal of universal access. Our continuous efforts to digitize government services are part of this broader and inclusive vision for the Philippines,» he said.

Once the budget is approved, the NDCP will serve as the country's strategic blueprint to bring universal and meaningful digital connectivity throughout the country and serve as a linchpin in creating a digital Philippines.