Internet access in the Federated States of Micronesia has increased 20-fold and broadband costs have dropped 99% since the government ended the telecom monopoly in 2014.
For decades, state-owned FSM Telecommunications Corporation was the sole provider. The 2014 Telecommunications Act opened the market, bringing in companies like Starlink Pacific, Kacific and iSolutions.
As a result, internet access now reaches 88% of the population. Broadband costs fell from $65.00 per Mbps per month to 78 cents. Mobile data dropped from $705 per Mbps to about $30.
More than 1,500 km of undersea fiber cables have been laid, and new satellite networks now connect the most remote of FSM’s 600+ islands. The expansion, supported by the World Bank’s Digital FSM Project, has also made FSM a landing point for the East Micronesia Cable, benefiting neighboring Kiribati and Nauru. Officials say the improved connectivity is vital for digital health, ID and voting services across the island nation.
