Telecommunication systems: general assessment:
due to years of underinvestment in infrastructure, has one of the lowest fixed-line tele densities in the region; rural areas rely on mobile services with little access to fixed-line access; mobile tele-density on par with region and is the most developed sector, with near universal phone connections; private investment to bring free Internet to parks; two submarine cables due for completion will support growth in fixed and mobile broadband (2021)
(2020)domestic: fixed-line teledensity roughly 11 per 100 persons; fixed-line investments are concentrating on improving rural connectivity; mobile-cellular teledensity about 119 per 100 persons (2019)
international: country code - 502; landing points for the ARCOS, AMX-1, American Movil-Texius West Coast Cable and the SAm-1 fiber-optic submarine cable system that, together, provide connectivity to South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US; connected to Central American Microwave System; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2019)
note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments
Definition: This entry includes a brief general assessment of a country's telecommunications system with details on the domestic and international components. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:
Source: CIA World Factbook - This page was last updated on Saturday, September 18, 2021
