FSM’s newest telecom starts in Yap

Yap is poised to be the first state in the Federated States of Micronesia to benefit from the entry of its newest licensed telecom company, iBoom (www.iboom.io), which is led by Yap native Lubuw Falanruw, who is making sure this happens as quickly as possible.

A company statement yesterday said that iBoom is hoping to start operations soon after installing temporary fiber optic cables, which are due to arrive soon in Yap.

The development in Yap is part of the national government’s Digital FSM Project, a World Bank-funded project that aims to connect all four states (Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei, and Kosrae) to undersea fiber optic cables, bringing fast, reliable internet and telecommunication to the people of FSM.

After the temporary cables are installed by iBoom to Colonia in Yap, work will start to build a permanent, resilient fiber-to-the-home network. The task of connecting each home, office and school to fiber optics is being implemented by FSM Telecommunications Cable Corp., which is FSM’s Open Access Entity and own the network on behalf of FSM’s government. They are spending an estimated $2 million on the Yap project alone, creating many local jobs during the installation and afterwards. An Australasian company, Universal Communications Group, won the contract to design the fiber-to-the-home network across three of FSM’s states, including Yap.

The overall goal, the statement said, is to upgrade communications and digital infrastructure across FSM, setting up Yap for greatly improved economic development over the next decade.

Falanruw recognizes how vital this project would be to the growth of his home island. Despite delays to his plans due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors, he assembled a team of local and expatriate Yapese to get things jumpstarted, from sourcing materials and labor to state of the art equipment. “It’s been challenging…but I am so grateful to have a team who all share the same passion and mission that iBoom has for Yap and its people,” said Falanruw. “The…team has truly accomplished many miracles. They are the heroes.”

Falanruw said that iBoom’s initial objective is to simply level the playing field for residents and set higher standards of telecommunication services. “But our mission and vision are much broader, as we will be creating an environment that will bring in more jobs with career paths, foster local innovations and entrepreneurs, and bring in revenue from outside FSM. We are ready to take on the challenge of being the change agents, maintaining our integrity while balancing modern technology with our traditions,” he added.

Both the Yap State Gov. Henry Falan and the Yap Legislature are 100% behind this project.

As a fully funded grant by the World Bank, the Digital FSM Project will not burden the government with additional loans or expenses. (PR)