Gov't to start Mindanao fiber project

The government will begin building the final phases of the National Fiber Backbone (NFB) next year to improve internet speed in Mindanao before President Marcos steps down in 2028.

- ELIJAH FELICE ROSALES

Information Secretary Ivan John Uy yesterday said the second and third segments of the NFB are scheduled to be completed in 2025, with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) preparing for the remainder of the project.

The second and third sections cover the south of Luzon, connecting to the initial leg that extends for 1,245 kilometers between Laoag, Ilocos Norte and Quezon City.

Uy said the DICT is gearing up to implement the fourth, fifth and sixth phases of the NFB, eyeing to get construction started next year. The goal is to put up the entire fiber backbone by 2027, a year before the Marcos administration ends its term.