THE country is aspiring to be a top and affordable provider of digital services in Asean by the end of the Marcos administration in 2028, according to Department of Information and Communications Technology Secretary Henry Aguda.
Currently, Singapore has the fastest internet in Asean for both fixed broadband and mobile, followed by Malaysia, with the Philippines ranking sixth, said a DICT report in 2025 based on the Speedtest Global Index by Ookla.
“The president’s ambition is for us to be number one or two. [It’s] a long way to go in terms of work,” Aguda said at the 2026 Philippine Telecommunications Summit held Feb. 5 at Newport Resorts World.
Despite progress in internet speed, affordability and coverage, Aguda admitted that “we still lag behind several Asean neighbors.” While seven out of 10 households have access to internet in Metro Manila, only three or four out of 10 families have it in many parts of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, Aguda said.
“This is not just a digital divide. It is an opportunity divide. Without connectivity, there is also no access to online education, digital jobs, e-commerce, financial services, and even basic government services,” he pointed out.
In response, Aguda presented a blueprint anchored on the Konektadong Pinoy Act (Republic Act 12234) and smart regulation as a solution to the long-standing challenge of barriers to entry in the telecommunications industry.
RA 12234, which lapsed into law in August 2025, seeks to improve internet speed and affordability by removing the need for a congressional franchise for data transmission providers. It promotes an open-access model, encourages infrastructure sharing, and streamlines regulations to boost competition, aiming to connect remote areas to the internet.
“Smart regulation is not anti-business, [because it enables] scaling by managing limited resources and telecommunication infrastructure sharing,“ Aguda noted. “Infrastructure sharing alone means lower costs, faster expansion, and wider coverage.“ “Together, the Konektadong Pinoy [law] and the National Digital Connectivity Plan (NDCP) form what we call the ultimate digital glow-up roadmap of the Philippines,” he said.
The NDCP, Aguda said, is the country’s first national infrastructure master plan for digital connectivity, which requires a P5.6-trillion investment, aligning policy and execution across sectors and administrations.
“It reflects the administration’s clear commitment to treat digital connectivity as a strategic national priority. The vision is simple but ambitious: fast, affordable, reliable, and resilient connectivity for all Filipinos, especially those in unserved and underserved areas,” Aguda said.
The success of Konektadong Pinoy and the NDCP National Digital Connectivity Plan depends on the government’ partnership with the telecom sector, he stressed.
