People in the North will have high speed and reliant internet service in the next five years as Telecom Fiji has launched their 5-year Labasa-Savusavu Fiber Project where they will extend the underground fiber optic cable network from Labasa to Savusavu.
Telecom Fiji says at the moment their fiber network is limited to the central business district areas of Labasa and Savusavu.
They say in addition, all Telecom Fiji services into Seaqaqa is supported via radio links only and extending fiber to Seaqaqa will improve reliability for customers.
Telecom Fiji says as part of phase 2, this fiber will later on extend all the way to Savusavu where they currently have high capacity bandwidth available via the submarine cable.
They say at the completion of phase 2, Labasa will be linked to Savusavu via fiber while the radio will still be maintained for redundancy.
Phase 1 is expected to complete in December this year.
While speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony in Wailevu, Labasa, Telecom Fiji CEO Charles Goundar says this transformative initiative will shape the future of the community, businesses, and lives.
He says over the course of this project, Telecom Fiji will support several schools along the Labasa to Seaqaqa corridor where they will connect these schools to the fiber optic links and with relevant technology that will enable the schools to connect online and foster a digital learning environment.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Communications Manoa Kamikamica says they are breaking ground and taking important steps towards developing a robust and resilient national telecommunications infrastructure that can support Fiji's growth and development for years to come – and in this part of Fiji where it is most needed.
He says a project at the cost of around $4 million means a lot to the people of Vanua Levu, children in the primary, secondary and tertiary system and a lot to the business communities and sectors it will serve.
Kamikamica says they believe the North has a great deal of potential and they have so much to offer and a lot of people bank on them.
He says the World Bank, and the Fiji Government will soon go into negotiations on a near US$200 million 10-year partnership.
The Deputy Prime Minister adds with this, they intend to provide critical infrastructure and essential services to set the foundation for what they hope for tourism in the North.
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