The National Communications Commission has expanded telecommunications access to remote parts of Taiwan and will increase high-speed broadband coverage rate to 85 percent by the end of the year, ROC Premier Jiang Yi-huah said June 5.
Jiang also directed the agency to continue working with local governments and ministries of economic affairs, education, health and welfare, as well as the Council of Indigenous Peoples, to expand the network, as access and coverage rate are important factors in national competitiveness.
According to the NCC, in 2012, it launched a four-year plan to expand high-speed broadband access to remote villages in an effort to bridge the digital divide, with the objective of raising delivery speeds from 2 megabits per second to at least 12 Mbps.
Between 2012 and 2013 the objectives for the increase in coverage rates have been met, the NCC said, adding that the coverage rate is expected to hit 95 percent before yearend 2015.
By the end of 2013 high-speed broadband had been extended to 226 villages and 215 remote tribal areas, the NCC added. Additional efforts to improve Internet access in schools on outlying islands have also proven successful, with 100 Mbps connections available for schools on Kinmen, Liuqiu, Lanyu, Matsu and Green Island. (SDH)
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