The Department for the Environment, Climate & Communications (DECC) has launched a consultation on International Connectivity for Telecommunications.
The purpose of the consultation is to invite all interested parties to contribute their views on the status of international connectivity for telecommunications in Ireland. The consultation will remain open until 19 July 2024. What do you need to know?
National and international subsea telecoms connectivity
Subsea cables connect the Irish domestic terrestrial fibre network to international cloud services and data resources. The stronger the connection between the domestic connectivity framework and the international connectivity framework is, the stronger and more efficient the national user experience will be. The purpose of the consultation is to invite all interested parties to contribute their views on the status of international connectivity for telecommunications in Ireland.
Connectivity and Economic Growth
Improvements in digital connectivity contribute to faster economic growth, by improving access to public services, facilitating business expansion and creating jobs. Ireland critically relies on international bandwidth from subsea cables for its economic development. Increasing capacity is critical to meet the ever-growing demand for digital services.
DECC's Digital Connectivity Strategy for Ireland highlights that the Irish Government needs to ensure that international connectivity infrastructure is "resilient, suitably diverse, and robust" so that it can meet national demand.
Strategy to become a 'Gateway to Europe' for subsea telecommunications cables
DECC has identified that Ireland is particularly suited to become a 'Gateway to Europe' given its geographical location as sea cable routes can come from multiple directions, thereby minimising the risk of simultaneous failure. The Irish policy position to encourage and boost national and international subsea telecoms connectivity supports EU policy in this area, including the European Commission's Path to Digital Decade 2030, its declarations on strengthening connectivity between the EU and its international partners and the European Commission's Recommendation on secure and resilient submarine cable infrastructures published in February 2024.
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