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The Philippines climbed a few places in a global ranking of mobile internet speeds in July, according to the latest figures released by global internet speed monitoring company Speedtest by Ookla.
In the Ookla Speedtest Global Index for July 2021, the country climbed three places to reach 72nd in mobile internet speed, down from 75th in June out of 139 countries included in the list.
Ookla figures show that the average mobile internet download speed in the Philippines improved to 33.69 megabits per second (Mbps) from 32.84 Mbps the previous month.
Mobile download speed, meanwhile, slowed slightly to 8.83 Mbps from 8.92 Mbps in June.
In terms of fixed broadband, the Philippines fell one place, dropping from 62nd out of 180 countries to 63rd place.
Despite the downgrade, the country’s average fixed broadband download speed improved to 71.17 Mbps, down from 66.55 Mbps the previous month.
Likewise, the fixed broadband download speed increased from 66.86 Mbps to 71.22 Mbps in June.
The Ookla Speedtest Global Index considers countries with at least 300 unique user results for mobile or fixed broadband to be placed in either category.
In Asia, the Philippines ranks 17th for fixed broadband and 23rd for mobile internet out of 50 countries.
Meanwhile, the Philippines ranked 5th out of 10 countries for both fixed broadband and mobile internet in the Southeast Asia region.
“These data show us the impressive growth rate of Internet speeds in our country in just one year,” Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) secretary Gregorio Honasan II said in a statement.
“Your DICT will continue to coordinate with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) as well as other government agencies and private stakeholders to ensure that internet speeds for fixed broadband and mobile internet continue on their upward trajectory in the world. over the next few months, â€Honasan added.
Honasan said the increase in internet speed in the country gained ground after President Rodrigo Duterte last year issued a directive for telecom operators to improve their services amid the pandemic, and the enhanced deployment of DICT’s digital connectivity initiatives, in particular the common tower policy.
The said policy not only allows the sharing of cell phone towers between telecommunications operators, but also promotes the streamlined processing of permits for the construction of common towers.
In addition to this policy, DICT, the Anti-Paperwork Authority (ARTA) and other key agencies have also issued Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) No. 001, art. 2021 for the simplified process of obtaining permits, licenses and authorizations for the construction of passive telecommunications tower infrastructure (PTTI).
The new JMC harmonizes the provisions of the original policy and the specific provisions of Republic Law 11494 or the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act on the accumulation of turns during the pandemic.
“Through our collective efforts within government, we have dramatically simplified the bureaucratic processes in issuing permits for cell phone towers. Therefore, we encourage tower companies and telecom operators to take advantage of the co-location services contained in the common tower policy to enjoy the benefits of the JMC, â€Honasan said.
DICT’s other major digital connectivity initiatives include the National Broadband Program (NBP), the Government Network (GovNet) and the Free Wi-Fi for All program. —LBG, GMA News
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