Providing universal access to areas not considered viable by the private sector is not a new challenge. In these areas therefore, the government can play a more active role in supporting and encouraging private initiatives.
Create a Universal Access and Service Fund utilizing spectrum user fees (SUF)
The NTC already collects SUFs, which telecommunications operators pass on to consumers through service fees (about PhP2 billion collected annually and remitted to the National Treasury). These funds can be used to build ICT infrastructure in rural areas by institutionalizing the use of SUFs to create a Universal Access and Service Fund (UASF).
Part of the UASF may be allocated for providing "smart subsidies"27 to aid prospective private operators in investing in the rural and unserved areas of the country. The fund may also be used in developing various broadband requirements of the public, particularly in education, health and for ICT awareness and capacity-building activities. In this initiative, mechanisms to ensure transparency and accountability, preferably with multisectoral participation, would have to be institutionalized.
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27 Smart Subsidies are one-time financial incentives intended to help "kick-start" rural telecommunications rollout. It is not meant to cover the full cost of infrastructure roll-out, but rather to merely support investment, without creating subsidy dependency.