Research Report on the Network Planning for the Greater Mekong Subregion

The Asia Pacific region has witnessed a remarkable growth in ICT interconnection in recent years. According to ESCAP 55.6 per cent of the world`s fixed broadband subscriptions are concentrated in Asia and the Pacific, while the fixed broadband subscription rates of Europe and North America lie at 20.3 per cent and 13.1 per cent respectively However, the broadband development among ESCAP subregions and member countries is uneven. ESCAP analysis shows that 75 per cent of fixed broadband subscribers in the Asia Pacific region comes from East and North East Asia, and the China alone accounts for 50 per cent of fixed broadband subscribers in the whole region. In the Republic of Korea, there are over 40 fixed broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants. At the other end of the spectrum, there are 18 ESCAP member States with less than 2 fixed broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants. Southeast Asia is no exception. For example, in terms of the 2017 ICT Development Index, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia ranked 18th, 53rd and 63rd respectively, while Cambodia, Myanma r and Lao PDR ranked 128th, 135th and 139th respectively.

ESCAP member States aware of the persistent imbalance in interconnection, endorsed the Asia Pacific Information Superhighway (AP-IS) as a regional cooperation initiative to promote broadband connectivity between countries. The AP-IS initiative focuses on four pillars namely: infrastructure connectivity (promoting investment in infrastructure connectivity); efficient Internet traffic and network management (including the establishment of Internet exchange points among others); e-resilience (resilient ICT infrastructure from natural disasters); and broadband for all. The AP-IS initiative implementation is guided by a Master Plan 2019-2022 and Regional Cooperation Framework Document 2019-2022. These documents articulate activities, outputs, schedules and financial mechanisms in an effort to bridge the digital divide and accelerate the achievement of the SDG s ESCAP cooperate s with academia partners to carry out research on broadband infrastructure and policy, which intend to guide the overall ICT infrastructure development in all subregions.

The report can be downloaded at: https://www.unescap.org/resources/research-report-network-planning-greater-mekong-subregion