Fast internet finally on the way for Solomon Islands

Happy internet: faster internet is coming to the Solomon Islands

The Solomon Islands’ slow internet will finally speed up by the first half of 2019, the Government says, after it signed an agreement with technology giant Huawei to build a fibre-optic cable from Sydney to Honiara.

The Memorandum of Understanding was signed in Honiara yesterday and will see construction kick off this year, with indicative 2019 completion date.

The 3400km cable from Honiara to Sydney will speed up local internet speeds – which are notoriously slow – to levels seen in western countries.

Huawei also announced a 600km domestic network to connecting Noro and Malaita.

Subsea fibre optic cables, as the name suggests, lie on the bottom of the ocean and transfer high-speed signals, allowing faster internet speeds.

As the cable is based in Sydney, it will also mean Australian-based internet sites will load much faster.

Meanwhile, Solomon Submarine Cable, the Government-owned subsidiary, will operate as a wholesale supplier of internet and data capacity to Australia for all licensed operators in Solomon Islands.

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