The country’s telecommunications companies have presented a blueprint to Malacañang to expand network infrastructure in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDAs) with new tower builds from 2025 to 2028.
In a recent Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) meeting, the Connectivity Plan Task Force (CPTF), led by Globe President and CEO Ernest Cu, proposed constructing new towers in remote areas through public-private collaboration.
This initiative aligns with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s pledge to enhance connectivity in remote areas, as stated in his last State of the Nation Address.
The proposal aims to bridge the digital divide by delivering essential telecom services to the Philippines’ most underserved communities. Currently, 7,063 barangays are classified as GIDAs, home to nearly 25 million residents.
Cu shared that as of 2024, over 600 Globe cell sites were already operational in GIDAs.
To expand coverage, the country’s three Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), including Globe, proposed maximizing existing towers and building new infrastructure in GIDAs. They also suggested providing SIMs with data plans through government subsidies to unconnected Filipino households between this year and 2028.
The SIMs will include automatic monthly load seeding of 50GB for a year, covering the average usage of a five-member household. This ensures that even remote communities can access mobile signals and the internet, enhancing their access to education, healthcare, government services, and economic opportunities.
"The telco industry is fully dedicated to leveraging our partnership within the industry and with the government to reach underserved areas where the private sector has been unable to build because of the negative cost to business,” said Cu.
“Once the government lays a bigger stake in our push for inclusive connectivity and invests in our proposal, this will mark a milestone in our collective aspiration for a Digital Philippines. Together, we will be able to create pathways to opportunities and essential services that can significantly improve lives,” he added.
By maximizing the use of existing sites while strategically building new ones in underserved areas, the project will minimize overlaps among providers and optimize coverage across the country. This allows each barangay in GIDAs to receive telco support from at least one provider, avoiding unnecessary competition and duplication of efforts in a single area.
Beyond the immediate infrastructure rollout, the CPTF is also advocating for critical legislative support to streamline the permitting process for new cell sites, ensure consistent energization for telco towers, and rationalize spectrum user fees.
These policy reforms are essential for the efficient deployment of new infrastructure, enabling telcos to serve GIDAs without encountering unnecessary regulatory hurdles.
In its Digital 2024 report released in January, Data Reportal stated that 26.4% of Filipinos “remained offline” at the start of the year, indicating that while robust connectivity has been achieved, a significant portion of the population still lacks internet access.
Marcos earlier vowed to improve connectivity infrastructure in the country, saying his administration would pave the way for policy reforms and nationwide enforcement of streamlined processes to remove hurdles to connectivity expansion.
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FAQs
1. What is the GIDA blueprint proposed by telcos? The GIDA blueprint is a proposal by the country’s telecommunications companies to expand network infrastructure in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDAs) with new tower builds from 2025 to 2028.
2. Who is leading the Connectivity Plan Task Force (CPTF)? The CPTF is led by Globe President and CEO Ernest Cu.
3. What are the benefits of the proposed SIMs with data plans? The proposed SIMs will include automatic monthly load seeding of 50GB for a year, covering the average usage of a five-member household. This ensures that even remote communities can access mobile signals and the internet, enhancing their access to education, healthcare, government services, and economic opportunities.
4. How will the project minimize overlaps among providers? By maximizing the use of existing sites while strategically building new ones in underserved areas, the project will minimize overlaps among providers and optimize coverage across the country.
5. What policy reforms are being advocated by the CPTF? The CPTF is advocating for critical legislative support to streamline the permitting process for new cell sites, ensure consistent energization for telco towers, and rationalize spectrum user fees.