US provides P118 million in grants to support 5G deployment in Philippines

Pictured above: Nokia Bell Labs Managing Partner Stefan Wilhelm (left) and NOW Telecom Chairman and CEO Mel Velasco Velarde (right) are U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and the Pacific. ) to sign the 118 million pesos USTDA grant in the presence of Secretary Daniel Krittenbrink and DICT Undersecretary Angelo Nuestro.

Pictured below: Daniel Krittenbrink, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (fifth from left), Mary Kay Carlson, US Ambassador to the Philippines (fourth from left), and Jose Manuel Romualdez, Philippine Ambassador to the United States (from right). 2nd), representatives of DICT, NOW Telecom and Nokia Bell Labs Consulting at the USTDA grant signing to deploy 5G in the Philippines on Jan. 20.

Manila, 23 January 2023— The U.S. Government, through the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), has provided NOW Telecom Company, Inc. with a P118 million ($2.15 million) grant for reliable and secure nationwide 5G mobile and Philippines broadband network.

NOW Telecom selected New Jersey-based Bell Labs Consulting, part of Nokia’s research division, Bell Labs, to conduct the study.

The grant agreement was signed by Mel Velasco Velarde, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NOW Telecom, and Stefan Wilhelm, Managing Partner of Nokia Bell Labs.th Bilateral Strategic Dialogue between the United States and the Philippines held in Manila on January 20. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Krittenbrink, U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Mary Kay Carlson, and Philippine Department of Information and Communications (DICT) Undersecretary for Connectivity Angelo Nuestro witness autograph signing.

“This 5G grant demonstrates the U.S. commitment to developing quality digital infrastructure and increasing access to affordable connectivity in the Philippines,” said Assistant Secretary of State Krittenbrink.

DICT Undersecretary Nuestro said: We welcome these opportunities to improve the lives of Filipinos. ”

Under a USTDA grant, the feasibility study will provide NOW Telecom with the analysis, design and planning necessary for the phased implementation of the project. It also includes establishing 5G pilot networks at multiple sites in Metro Manila to validate network performance, test 5G use cases, and provide data to inform large-scale deployment.

The project aims to support the Philippines’ digital transformation by meeting the growing demand for high-bandwidth, reliable and secure digital services from Philippine households and industries.

Feasibility study grant advances U.S. digital policy in line with the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. This framework aims to promote secure digital infrastructure in the region to enhance economic growth and promote an open digital society.