Ministry to invest NPR5.63bn in rural fibre expansion

The Ministry of Information and Communications (MoIC) in Nepal has announced plans to use NPR5.63 billion (USD66.9 million) from the state’s Rural Telecommunication Development Fund (RTDF) to expand the provision of fibre-optic services to more remote parts of the country. MyRepublica reports that the rollout programme is being carried out under the auspices of the country’s ‘District Optical Fiber Project’, and that it has assigned a committee to oversee the scheme which will target making improvements in the quality of voice and data services in certain rural areas. The ambitious District Optical Fibre Network Project is aiming to construct a high speed data service, offering 256kbps bandwidth in 38 districts and their rural communities by 2014.