Vanuatu’s efforts to develop its ICT sector have been strongly supported by a number of development partners as well as international and regional organizations, including the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), World Bank, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), AsiaPacific Telecommunity (APT, Export-Import Bank of China (China Exim Bank), Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC), United States Peace Corps, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA). The Government has been discussing opportunities for collaboration with other public and private partners. Achievements to date have established a solid foundation for further development of the sector and its enhanced contribution to the socio-economic development of the country in general. A lot is yet to be done, however—as evidenced by the still very low level of use of Internet services10. Furthermore, the availability of radio broadcasting, which still is the most used and most trusted mass medium, is far from universal—especially in rural areas and more remote provinces11. Increased access to such services will open up a lot of opportunities for the ICT-supported socio-economic development. Furthermore, currently widely available services12 (including mobile voice and SMS) could be further leveraged for delivery of public and private services. Importantly, the environment seems to be ripe for further development. For example, only 10.9% of the population (including those, who never seen or used the Internet) do not perceive any benefit of using the Internet13. Therefore it is clear that efforts of the Government and other stakeholders to further develop the ICT sector will find a fertile ground. Challenges Despite a lot of potential that ICTs could bring in terms of the socio-economic development of Vanuatu, the country faces certain serious challenges to the sector development. It is not unique in this regard—the Pacific ICT Ministers in the Wellington Declaration of 2006 noted that “[t]he Pacific region faces a number of obstacles to the effective deployment of communications and other infrastructure”. Such challenges relate to all elements of the ICT ecosystem, including infrastructure, devices, users, as well as content and applications. In terms of infrastructure deployment, primary challenges are presented by geography and topography of Vanuatu. First of all, distance to points-of-presence of submarine-fibre-based international connectivity means that, even if (when) Vanuatu is connected to international communications networks via a submarine cable, costs of such connectivity might restrict the extent to which such connections could translate into lower prices for end users. A study commissioned 10 The Pacific Institute of Public Policy (PIPP) reports that 72% of the general and 79% of the rural population have never used or seen the Internet. PIPP (2011). Net Effects: Social and economic impacts of telecommunications and internet in Vanuatu. 11 InterMedia (2013). Citizen Access to Information in Vanuatu. Study supported by ABC International Development and AusAID. 18 12 Admittedly, quality of such services may still need to be improved. 13 PIPP (2011). Net Effects: Social and economic impacts of telecommunications and internet in Vanuatu. National Information and Communication Technology Policy