P4: Pacific Regional Connectivity Program Phase 4: KI: Connectivity Project

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The development objective of the Fourth Phase of the Pacific Regional Connectivity Program Project for Kiribati is to reduce the cost and increase the availability of Internet services in Kiribati. The project comprises of three components. The first component, submarine cable system consists of following sub-components: (i) submarine cable system; and (ii) cable landing station (CLS) and ancillary equipment. The second component, technical assistance (TA) consists of following sub-components: (i) provision of legal, financial, technical, and transactional assistance in connection with the drafting and negotiation of an arrangement for the construction, ownership, and management of the East Micronesia cable (EMC) to be entered into, between Kiribati, Nauru, and Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), each acting through its respective national cable operator on the one hand and the constructor and other parties (as the case may be) on the other hand; (ii) provision of legal advisory assistance for the establishment of a Kiribati national cable service operator, with capacity and resources for the purpose of operating the EMC and managing all national aspects of the provision of services to users of the EMC’s capacity in the Recipient’s territory; (iii) provision of TA to the Communications Commission of Kiribati (CCK) in the areas of licensing, interconnection and access, and landing party agreements, including any implementing or ancillary regulatory instruments ensuring cost‐based, non‐discriminatory, and open access to capacity; and (iv) provision of information and communication technologies (ICT) policy and legal technical assistance in connection with electronic transactions (such as e‐government and e‐commerce) to facilitate citizens access to and use of broadband services, including for the development of the legal and regulatory framework to support safe electronic transactions, cyber security, data protection, and confidentiality. The third component, project management and administration supports a program of activities designed to strengthen the capacity of the Recipient (component 3(a)) and related agencies involved in the implementation of the project, and the project implementing entity (component 3(b)) once established, to process project transactions, implementation, and management.