It’ll be a pilot run for the National Broadband Plan
The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has announced that is ready to start testing the National Fiber Backbone in the final quarter of 2018.
The backbone is part of the National Broadband plan of the DICT, and comes after the government agency managed to seal several interconnectivity deals, including the high-profile partnership with social media juggernaut Facebook last year for the Luzon Bypass Corridor.
Testing is set for November to December this year, and the DICT plans to light up portions of the National Grid Corporation’s 6,145 kilometer dark fiber network, giving high-speed internet to Government Network (GovNet) and Pipol Konek Free Wi-Fi in Public Places beneficiaries.
“This signals the dawn of fulfilling our promise to the Filipinos in providing them with better connectivity,” said Acting Secretary Eliseo M. Rio Jr.
Seven point-to-point routes in Benguet, Tarlac, Pampanga, Batangas, Mindoro, Albay, Camarines Sur, Cagayan, and Bohol were identified for the pilot project, which is aimed to test both the integrity of NGCP Optical Groundwire (OPGW) and the latest optical transport technologies in the market.
The DICT has submitted a 2-billion proposed budget for next year to gear up the acceleration the NBP’s implementation, including the utilization of the backbone network.
