 Welcome to the ITU Planning Potentiary Conference 2022 here in Bucharest, Romania, where I'm very pleased to be joined in the studio this morning by His Excellency Carlsen Apis, who is the Secretary of the Department of Transportation, the Communications and Infrastructure for the Federated States of Micronesia. Minister, welcome to the studio. Thank you, and thank you Max for inviting me and giving me this opportunity to share a little about the MSM. Well, I mean, I don't know too much about the Federated States of Micronesia. Perhaps you could provide a little bit of background information on the States and also let's talk a little bit about your current communication infrastructure. Thank you. For background information, we are located in the Western Pacific Ocean. It's an island country of 607 islands, spread out over an area of about 2.7 million square kilometers. So as you know, based on that geographical characteristic, communications is very important. That's one of our greatest challenges, communications and transportation. And with the improvements in communications today, we're able to bring our islands together much closer. Our isolation has been the challenge for a long time. So in 2014, the government embarked on really an endeavor to connect all the islands. The 607 islands are divided up into four states. So we wanted to bring in submarine cables, provide fiber services. And within that period, we've been able to fulfill about 75 percent. We've connected three states and we have one more going. That's a lot of submarine cables. Yes, and we are grateful to all those who have contributed to that effort, our donor partners. For the remaining state, we are now connecting one submarine cable from this from the capital, Punepe, to Kusai, which is our western most state. But because it's so costly to put in submarine cables now, it's not visible just to one state. So we are working with our regional partners, actually three other countries, neighboring countries, Kiribati and Nauru, to connect all three islands. And this is an endeavor supported by Australia, Japan and the U.S. And we really are grateful to their assistance. This, we are going out on pit at the moment. The design is completed and we're requesting for proposals from interested companies. So you're leading more towards a submarine cable connectivity than satellite, for example? We are, because of the nature of our geography, we are looking at both. So for the state capitals, there are four state capitals, we are connecting by submarine cable. But for the rural islands, the outlying islands, we are doing satellite connection. And we have currently a project funded by the World Bank that's helping us put in 4G-like services out in the other islands. They are helping us with the necessary infrastructure. And we are looking to companies like Starlink that may be coming in next year to provide that satellite connection. Currently, we have some of the islands are connected through Kassavik, which is a regional service provided in the islands. But it covers only about three-fourths of the nation. Our eastern most, our western most state is not included, yeah. So Starlink really provides a good opportunity. The challenges are out of the island's face because of their isolation. Medical services are limited. Some of the islands, it takes about three days forage by sea. So this will bring our doctors directly to our people on the islands, and education as well. And through e-meds, in the settlements, yeah. And education, of course. Yes, and education. So some of the islands already have satellite connections, and now you have internet available in the classrooms. But right now, it's only limited to a few islands, and we want to expand that. Emergency telecommunications as well. Yes, as well. I mean, I'm guessing that that's probably something which is high on the agenda in terms of improving that. Yes, definitely. Some, for example, one of our states in the western most state, yeah, half of the population, they're spread out over small islands. So the only way to provide good services is really through satellite connections. And in terms of bridging the digital divide, I mean, I think it's a well-known fact that, of course, that connectivity can help to do that. How are you addressing that? Right. Thank you. That's an important question. And really, we're looking at this to improve the economic development, not just health and education, but to provide opportunities for our people. They've been isolated for a long time. And now, as we're bringing services to them, they're able to, even in terms of, they're able to connect to their families overseas, who they've sent their children off for school and have gotten jobs out there, and they need to connect to them. We have to admit that in the other islands, there are very limited opportunities for people, for families, in terms of income. So this is, we're bringing the markets to them. We're connecting them to their families overseas. And there's remittance back and forth, as well as commercial opportunities. I mean, I'm looking at, for example, my children today compared to me, I never had the opportunities that they had. They have today. In terms of business, I mean, their market is the whole world now. And as, you know, our southernmost island is about three days away. They struggle with problems of water shortage. And we don't often know, unless it ships us up on the island. And the radio communication system is not always reliable. They can, through the AM radio, they'll announce on the radio, please turn on your VHF so we can communicate. So you're able to get the service out there. We can know in real time the challenges that they will face. What about ITU? You've taken the time to be here. It's a long slog here over the last few weeks. What can ITU do to help? Thank you. You know, as a developing country in the small island state, while you're struggling to develop, you don't have the capacity. You don't have the expertise to embark on all these. I mean, communications is really at the forefront of technology and it's advancing and changing and emerging all the time. And we really look to ITU for assistance in helping us with our capacity building. Also, pointing us in directions where we can get assistance from others, donor partners. They have the resources. They have the access. They have the network. And we look to them to help us in the region, not just us, not just connecting within our islands, but also connecting to the rest of the world. We were to sit here together or at the next planning potential conference in 2026. In four years' time, how would you hope that landscape would look in terms of connectivity in my community then? Right. You know, this conference, and it's an important one, although it's difficult for us to get here so far from our country. We've made an effort to come here. And the catchphrase there is really connecting the unconnected. And we hope that in the next four years, there will be no unconnected. But in the process in getting there, as we're connecting, we need assistance in terms of, for example, managing that old service. For example, in areas like cybersecurity. Yeah. While we're getting connected, we need that help to make sure that it's secure. We're not taking an advantage off. The opportunity that comes in is good for not just the government, but the people as well. I wish you a long and successful journey, but short in terms of the achievements and the actions. Carlson Appis, Secretary of the Department of Transportation Communications and Infrastructure for the Federated States of Micronesia. I want to thank you very much for joining us in the studio and hopefully we'll catch up again with you very, very soon. Thank you very much, Max. And to take advantage of this opportunity, I want to thank Romania for being a wonderful host and I to you for all the arrangements. Thank you very much. You may indeed. Thanks a lot. Thank you.