China has provided USD3.47 million (about K13 million) to the Government of Papua New Guinea to repair the Kumul Submarine Cable Network (KSCN).
According to William Duma, PNG’s Minister for State Enterprise, the Chinese government had always supported PNG in important projects in the country. And that the financial assistance assisted them to meet the repair cost of the KSCN systems one and two of around USD5.5 million (about K17 million).
The KSCN system is a 5,457km domestic internet platform which links West Sepik to East Sepik, Manus, West New Britain, New Ireland, East New Britain, Autonomous Region of Bougainville, and the four provinces in the Highlands.
The earthquake happened on Sept 11, 2022, severely damaged the telecommunications infrastructures, including the submarine cable systems such as the PPC-1 cable connecting Sydney, Madang and Guam, as well as the KSCN systems one and two. This affected telecommunication and internet services up to 70 per cent of the whole country.
According to Duma, there was a significant impact on business services, government services, and general communication services for a period of three months from September to November, leading to a significant loss in revenue.
