The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) stressed the need for more cell towers to ensure faster and efficient  internet function for households.

In an interview, DICT Undersecretary Paul Joseph Mercado explained that optimal internet connectivity for households can be achieved if there is a dense network of cell towers in close proximity to each other.

"That also depends on the technology, because apparently it's 5G technology, you also need to really stick together the cell towers. If that's just 3G we're talking about or 2G, one cell site is too many," said Mercado.

"It will vary, the number will vary depending on the technology and that's the reason," he added.

Meanwhile, when asked about the number of households a single cell tower can serve, DICT spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Aboy Paraiso explained that coverage depends on the distance of the households from the tower, as cell towers have limited range.

"Depending on their radius. If more are within the radius, maybe bigger than that 4,000 households. It's not really households that we base on but the radius, kilometers here is our base on how many will be affected and how many will be served by those towers," said Paraiso.

To address these challenges, DICT is eyeing to build more cell towers this year, however, Paraiso said that in order to provide internet connectivity to Filipinos, over 30,000 cell sites are still needed to be built.

According to the DICT, there are only around 12,000 independent common towers in the country, adding that private telcos own most of the cell towers in the country.

The Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) earlier requested P240 billion to enhance internet infrastructure and P60 billion annual allocation for DICT to lease towers, build last-mile facilities, and optimize existing telco facilities, however, the government only granted P16.1 billion.