PHL Internet slowest in ASEAN: report

An infographic posted by ASEAN DNA shows what most Pinoy netizens already know to be true: Internet speed in the Philippines is the slowest in the whole Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

At 3.6 megabytes per second (Mbps), the country lags behind Laos (4.0 Mbps), Indonesia (4.1 Mbps), Myanmar and Brunei (4.9 Mbps), Malaysia (5.5 Mbps) and Cambodia (5.7 Mbps). The report showed that the average internet speed for the ASEAN region is 12.4 Mbps, or roughly four times faster than current Internet speed in the Philippines.

In comparison, ASEAN DNA—which describes itself as a site “to promote a better understanding and appreciation of shared values and common characteristics of ASEAN”—showed that Singapore leads the region in terms of fastest Internet speed, reaching up to 61.0 Mbps or more than 1500 percent faster than the Philippine Internet.

Other countries mentioned in the report include Vietnam (13.1) and Thailand (17.7), the only two other Southeast Asian countries joining Singapore as those with Internet speeds above the ASEAN average.

Meanwhile, Japan (41.7 Mbps), China (18.3 Mbps) and the USA (22.3 Mbps) round up the countries included in the infographic. All three have speeds above the global average of 17.5 Mbps.

State of the Internet

A recent study on the state of the Internet conducted by Internet content delivery network company Akamai showed that there was a very broad range of high broadband adoption rates across the Asia Pacific.

However, the study also revealed that Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong were the only Asia Pacific countries with high broadband adoption levels.

In contrast, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam did not even “qualify for inclusion in the global ranking [since] high broadband adoption in these countries is extremely low.”

Internet access as a right

In 2011, the United Nations recognized Internet access as a human right. A report by the UN Human Rights Council’s 17th session underscored the “unique and transformative” nature of the Internet, allowing individuals to exercise a range of human rights and to promote the progress of society as a whole.

The UN report encouraged states to include Internet literacy skills in school curricula, and support similar learning modules outside of schools.

In addition to basic skills training, modules should clarify the benefits of accessing information online, and of responsibly contributing information.

That same year, a study found that in terms of average Internet broadband download speed, the Philippines lags behind roughly two-thirds of the world. The Philippines ranks 139th out of 185 countries, surpassed even by small countries such as Lithuania and Kenya. — Patricia Denise Chiu/BM, GMA News