The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has required all public telecommunication entities and Internet service providers to submit their business continuity plan that will ensure unhampered delivery of critical services especially since the Philippines is in a tough battle against a pandemic.
In a statement, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) said its attached agency issued the order to “boost efforts at maintaining the operation of vital ICT services and supporting infostructure as the administration extends the enhanced community quarantine until the end of April 2020 to manage the Covid-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] threat.”
The business continuity plans should detail measures taken to ensure uninterrupted service and to address the increased demand for ICT services. These should be submitted to the NTC on or before April 17.
Telco services, under Republic Act 11469, otherwise known as the “Bayanihan to Heal as One Act,” are considered critical services for the duration of the enhanced community quarantine.
The ICT department underscored the “key role” that the telco industry plays today, as people are turning to the Internet to continue productivity. Since the start of the lockdown, companies have been implementing work-from-home arrangements, and people are consuming more data from their homes.
As a result, local telcos have seen “spikes” in terms of data consumption in their networks, while some entertainment and productivity apps have noted huge surges—some as a high as 300 percent—in terms of usage. With the increased demand for connectivity, telcos have provided some forms of relief for people to cope with the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak. They have provided payment deferments and increased data allocations for their customers since the start of the lockdown period.
The role of telcos during this crisis was highlighted recently in the United Nations. To recall, the International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development adopted an agenda that outlines key policies and strategies to promote “faster and better recovery” through the Internet.
The Broadband Commission has identified the “three pillars of resilient connectivity, affordable access, and safe use of online services for informed and educated societies, to mitigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and ease the immediate adverse impacts for economies and societies.”
DICT Undersecretary Eliseo M. Rio Jr. has said the government and the private sector are now working toward several projects to support the global Internet agenda.
Local telcos, for their part, said they are following the guidelines set by the Broadband Commission, especially since there is a huge demand for Internet connectivity during these trying times.
Image credits: Nonie Reyes