[Photo: Supplied]

Vodafone Fiji today announced a further investment of $55 million into the company’s network infrastructure.

Regional Chief Executive Officer, Pradeep Lal, says such investment is essential to support the growing digital economy and bridge the digital divide so that no one is left behind.

Lal says that over the last two decades, Vodafone Fiji has built a robust network infrastructure to deliver the latest, faster, more reliable Internet and Wi-Fi services to Fijians.

He adds they are committed to strengthening their existing network infrastructure and will continue to invest in more capacity on the existing platforms to focus on untapped regions in Fiji, especially rural and maritime areas, with an injection of 20 new sites.

Vodafone is also well positioned to meet the increasing demand for data products and services.

The Regional Chief Executive says the digital world is exploding amidst the global pandemic insurgence and the exponential growth in data usage is reflected on the network as well.

Vodafone Fiji has recorded a five-fold increase in data traffic over the last few years.

He adds that, on an average, data traffic is increasing by up to 50% annually.

He says the continued investments are strategically aligned with digitalFIJI, which has a shared vision aimed at developing a $1 billion digital economy in Fiji by 2030.