Free WiFi program budget tripled to P7.5 billion

MANILA – A lawmaker said the allocation for the Free Wi-Fi for All program tripled to PHP7.5 billion under the 2025 budget, paving the way for the expansion of password-free public internet hotspots nationwide.

In a news release Tuesday, Makati City 2nd District Rep. Luis Campos Jr., vice chairperson of the House Committee on Appropriations, said the additional funding this year aims to establish up to 50,000 public WiFi hotspots, particularly in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas.

“We are counting on the expansion of free Wi-Fi hotspots to improve public access to online learning and distance education,” Campos said.

Campos expressed hope that the program would help Filipinos in rural communities access valuable online resources, including government skills training services, which could assist them in securing new employment and livelihood opportunities.

He renewed his call for the passage of a new law requiring private telecommunications companies (telcos) to deliver faster mobile internet speeds.

He was pertaining to House Bill 10215, which seeks to classify high-speed internet as a basic telecommunications service.

The reclassification would authorize the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to set minimum mobile internet speed targets that telcos must meet, with non-compliance penalties reaching up to PHP1 million per day.

“We need faster mobile internet speeds to boost productivity. Slow internet speeds result in productivity loss,” Campos said.

According to the December 2024 Global Speedtest Index report by Ookla, the Philippines’ average mobile internet speed was 36.36 megabits per second (Mbp), way behind its Southeast Asian peers, such as Thailand (65.47 Mbps), Vietnam (86.96 Mbps), Malaysia (105.36 Mbps), and Singapore (129.13 Mbps). (PNA)

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