Above: Dominica (CJ Photo)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Dominica is planning a major broadband upgrade, according to Telecom Minister Kelvar Darroux.

The plan is to make “reliable telephone acccess available throughout the islands,” Darroux said in a government release.

“The issue of broadband access has always been a concern for us,” he said. “In Dominica, we still have our challenges. You will travel from Roseau to Portsmouth and if you’re using your phone, you’ realize that at several points, the call will drop? Why is that happening? Why is there no service?”

There are different challenges in different areas of the island; Mero, for example, is below sea level, which makes receiving calls and using mobile data an issue because of broadband issues.

But the plan is to change that, according to Darroux, who recently attended a meeting of regional telecom ministers in St Lucia.

“This is so the consumers can have readily-available broadband service from which they can benefit,” he said.

Darroux said the government had also asked ECTEL, the regulatory body for Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, to discuss an amicable resolution as to how best to establish a level playing field for costs across the board — whether roaming charges or inter-carrier rates.”

“We have given ECTEL to meet with the service providers to further develop their infrastructure as it relates to broadband,” he said.