Huawei says ready to help Ukraine develop broadband

KIEV - Chinese telecom company Huawei is ready to provide the Ukrainian government with a draft plan for the development of broadband communications, a Huawei official said here Tuesday.

"We are ready to share our technologies and expertise in building broadband on a country scale," Li Jian, president of the company's European Area, said at the Huawei-initiated one-day Ukraine Digital Transformation Forum 2019.

Over the past three years, Huawei, in collaboration with local operators, has helped Ukraine move from 2G to 4G and increase its mobile broadband penetration from 8 percent to 65 percent, Li said.

"Ukraine still has great potential to increase broadband penetration and improve coverage in rural areas. If it is possible to increase mobile penetration from 65 percent to 85 percent, the country's GDP (gross domestic product) will grow by 3 percent," he said.

Li said that broadband development is the main prerequisite for ensuring Ukraine's digital economic growth.

"We are ready to work closely with the government of Ukraine ... to jointly create a digital platform, develop sectoral ecosystems and stimulate Ukraine's socio-economic development," he said.

Cloud-based technologies are the foundation of e-governance, he added.