"By the end of this year, [maybe the plan] can be finalised and then implemented by next year," said DICT Undersecretary Denis F. Villorente, in a report by GMA News Online.
In his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) on 25 July 2016, President Rodrigo Duterte said he ordered the DICT to develop a NBP to boost the deployment of fibre optic cables and wireless technologies in the country to improve internet speed.
In the same report, Villorente said the DICT plans to consult various stakeholders from the private sector - such as PLDT, and Globe Telecom - and government to get their inputs for the development of NBP, which is now in the last stages of finalisation.
