evidoria

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Good practice Imported

Tonga–Fiji Submarine Cable & TongaPass Digital ID Programme

Tonga · Nuku'alofa · See the Tonga profile · See the Nuku'alofa profile

Evidence: Observational / pre–post Top 23% 92/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

The Pacific Regional Connectivity Program built Tonga's first submarine cables (2013–2018), lifting broadband penetration from under 2% to 50% and cutting bandwidth costs over 95%; a companion project launched the TongaPass digital ID in 2025, six years after approval.

<2% → 50%
Broadband penetration (2010–2018)
40 → 4,400 Mbps
International bandwidth (2013–2018)
US$1,500–3,500 → ~US$75
Wholesale bandwidth cost per Mbps/month

Details

Maturity
Established
Promoter
World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Tonga Cable Ltd & Government of Tonga
Period
2011–2018 (cable); 2019–2025 (digital ID)
Keywords
submarine cable, connectivity infrastructure, digital identity, e-government

Context

The World Bank (IDA) and Asian Development Bank co-financed Tonga's component of the Pacific Regional Connectivity Program: a US$34.0 million submarine cable from Nuku'alofa to Fiji, later extended domestically to Ha'apai and Vava'u, replacing expensive satellite links. A companion project funded the MOSIP-based TongaPass digital ID, launched publicly in June 2025.

Results

Broadband penetration rose from under 2% (2010) to 50% at project close in 2018, beating the revised 40% target; international bandwidth grew from 40 to 4,400 Mbps and wholesale cost fell from US$1,500–3,500 to about US$75 per Mbps per month. The completion report also documents an unbuilt independent regulator, stalled data-protection laws and gender-disaggregated monitoring dropped after 2016.

Implementation

Implementation detail (cost, timeline, staffing, conditions for success) is not yet available for this practice.

Commonly funded by

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Data sources

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