World Bank loan awaited for fiber backbone final phase

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) said it hopes to obtain World Bank loans within three to four months to finance the remaining phases of the national fiber backbone project.

“There are two loans for phases four and five (of the national fiber backbone). The one for Eastern Mindanao is already approved. There will be a second loan for Western Mindanao, the status of which is already approved by the (Philippine) Economic Development Committee,” Information and Communications Technology Secretary Henry Rhoel R. Aguda said on the sidelines of a recent forum.

The second loan is estimated at around USD 300 million, Mr. Aguda said, noting that the agency is now awaiting word from the World Bank on the loan.

“What we are waiting for now is for the World Bank to give us the formal proposal. Maybe the study would take around three to four months, but at least on the side of the Philippine government, we’re okay to entertain their proposal of extending us a loan,” Mr. Aguda said.

In August, the DICT announced that phases 4 and 5 of the national fiber backbone will be completed next year, following the start of construction that same month.

The project is expected to bring high-speed internet to more nodes in Mindanao via a 1,000-kilometer high-speed government-owned fiber network connecting Butuan, Cagayan de Oro, Bukidnon, Zamboanga, and Davao.

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

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

The current 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 provinces. — Ashley Erika O. Jose