Philippine officials and a Facebook representative on Wednesday signed a partnership to build high-speed internet infrastructure. Warren de Guzman, ABS-CBN News



MANILA - The Philippine government said Tuesday it partnered with Facebook, the world's largest social network, to build high-speed internet infrastructure.

The Bases Conversion and Development Authority will construct the Luzon Bypass Corridor, composed of 2 cable landing stations connected by a 250-km cable network corridor, according to a joint statement from the BCDA and the Department of Information and Communications Technology.

Facebook, the "first party" to use the government-built facility, was tasked to build and operate a submarine cable system that will land on Luzon's east and west coasts, the statement said.

The cable system will connect Luzon to internet systems in the US and Asia, it said.

"In exchange for utilizing the bypass infrastructure, Facebook will provide the Philippine government with spectrum equivalent to 2 million Mbps, significantly expanding the capacity available for the government's connectivity programs," it said.

The Luzon Bypass will be online in 2018, said DICT officer-in-charge Eliseo Rio.

President Rodrigo Duterte has promised to improve internet connection in the country, which is among the slowest in the world. Last March, he approved the creation of a national broadband plan and government portal.