DICT kicks off National Fiber Backbone phases 4 and 5

THE Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has officially started building the final phases of the National Fiber Backbone.

“For so long, fast internet seemed to be available only in big cities: Manila, Cebu, Davao. But now, we have a clear directive from the President to bridge connectivity gap,” Information and Communications Technology Henry Rhoel R. Aguda said in a media release on Tuesday.

This came after the agency said that it had launched the phases four and five of the national fiber backbone under the P16.1-billion Philippine Digital Infrastructure Project (PDIP).

The project is expected to bring high-speed internet connection in Mindanao by delivering 1,000 kilometers of high-speed, government-owned fiber network to connect cities in Mindanao which includes Butuan, Cagayan de Oro, Bukidnon, Zamboanga, and Davao.

The DICT said previously that it had obtained a $287.24-million loan from the World Bank to accelerate phases 4 and 5 of the project.

The completion of the project is expected to spur growth in rural areas, especially in the Visayas and Mindanao.

In June, the DICT said it hopes to complete the second and third phases of the National Fiber Backbone by the end of the year.

The National Fiber Backbone project aims to provide faster and reliable internet connectivity. The DICT estimates around 70 million Filipinos to benefit from the project.

The two phases cover southern Luzon and parts of the Visayas and Mindanao.

The first phase, which involves high-speed connections between Laoag, Ilocos Norte and Quezon City, was completed in April 2024. It covers 1,245 kilometers with 28 nodes. It has an initial 600 gigabits per second optical spectrum capacity that will serve the government and at least 14 province — Ashley Erika O. Jose