Telecommunications in Tuvalu


Telecommunications in Tuvalu cover Tuvalu's 6 atolls and 3 reef islands. The islands of Tuvalu rely on satellite dishes for communication and internet access.
The Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation, a state-owned enterprise, provides fixed line telephone communications to subscribers on each island and mobile phone services on Funafuti, Vaitupu and Nukulaelae. TTC is a distributor of Fiji Television service.

Telephones

Telephones - main lines in use:
900
Telephones - mobile cellular:
1300
Telephone system:

domestic:
radiotelephone communications between islands

international:
country code - 688; international calls can be made by satellite

Radio and television

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0 - The Tuvalu Media Department of the Government of Tuvalu operates Radio Tuvalu, which broadcasts on the AM frequency. In 2011 the Japanese government provided financial support to construct a new AM broadcast studio. The new AM radio transmitter on Funafuti replaced the FM radio service to the outer islands and freed up satellite bandwidth for mobile services.
Radios:
4,000
Television broadcast stations:
TTC is a distributor of Fiji Television service.
Televisions:
unknown number.

Internet

Internet Service Providers :
Tuvalu.tv is the sole provider of Internet access in Tuvalu. The ISP is operated by the ICT Department of the Government of Tuvalu.
The available bandwidth is only 512 kbit/s uplink, and 1.5 Mbit/s downlink. Throughout Tuvalu are more than 900 subscribers who want to use the satellite service, with demand slowing down the speed of the entire system. TTC currently operates satellite internet services with less than 20 Mbit/s of capacity. In June 2014 TTC signed a five-year agreement with Kacific Broadband Satellites for the supply of provide high speed bandwidth to the islands of Tuvalu.
The service will be provided by the Kacific-1 satellite - Ka band High Throughput Satellite - that is due to be launched in late 2016 or early 2017. Kacific will provide TTC with increasing levels of capacity over the period, starting with 80Mbit/s and up to 150 Mbit/s after four years. TTC can, take extra capacity - up to 225 Mbit/s.
In January 2019 the World Bank approved a US$29 million grant for the Tuvalu Telecommunications and ICT Development Project which is intended to boost internet connectivity in Tuvalu, including to the country's outer islands. The project will also support investments in an international optical fiber submarine cable to provide faster, lower-cost internet bandwidth. The project will include reforms of the Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation to redevelop the government-run entity as a public-private partnership in cooperation with an experienced international telecommunications operator, which will selected using a competitive process.
Country code : TV