Tuvalu
3.4 Tuvalu Telecommunications

Tuvalu Telecommunication Corporation (TTC) also known as Tuvalu Telecom is a state-owned enterprise. It is the sole provider of fixed telephone communication services, mobile services, and Internet services to the country. TTC rely solely on satellite communications.  It provides fixed-line telephone communications to subscribers on each of the islands of Tuvalu. Each island in Tuvalu relies on TTC for the use of a satellite dish for inter-island telephone communication and internet access. TTC also provides mobile phone services on Funafuti, Vaitupu and Nukulaelae 

SIM cards can be obtained from the TTC office and top up vouchers for data are available at all stores. It should be noted at that at time of writing the app necessary to add additional funds to personal sim cards was only available for Android phones, not for Apple.  

Mobile phones can receive but not make international calls. 

Currently there are no restrictions in placed for the purchasing of sim cards but this is something that the company is considering before the rolling out of mobile money services. 

  

For more information on telecoms contacts, please see the following link: 4.11 Additional Services Contact List 

Telephone Services 

Is there an existing landline telephone network? 

Yes  

Does it allow international calls? 

No 

Number and Length of Downtime Periods (on average) 

 Often 

 6 hours 

Mobile Phone Providers  

TCC 

Approximate Percentage of National Coverage 

 20% 

Telecommunications Regulations 

  

Regulations on Usage and Import 

 

Regulations in Place? 

Regulating Authority 

Satellite 

 Yes  

 Government of Tuvalu (Regulator) 

HF Radio 

Yes  

 Government of Tuvalu (Regulator) 

UHF/VHF/HF Radio: Handheld, Base and Mobile 

Yes  

 Government of Tuvalu (Regulator) 

UHF/VHF Repeaters 

Yes  

 Government of Tuvalu (Regulator) 

GPS 

Yes  

 Government of Tuvalu (Regulator) 

VSAT 

Yes  

 Government of Tuvalu (Regulator) 

Existing Humanitarian Telecoms Systems 

There are no existing humanitarian telecoms systems.   

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 

Tuvalu.tv is the sole provider of Internet access in Tuvalu. Connections rely solely on satellite communications. 

The ISP is operated by the ICT (Information and Communications Technology) Department of the Government of Tuvalu. 

In July 2020, the Government of Tuvalu signed a five-year agreement with Kacific for 400Mbps to 600Mbps of satellite capacity. the agreement provides a comprehensive turnkey service including sixty 1.2 metre VSAT terminals (satellite dishes) for schools, medical clinics, government agencies and small businesses, forty outdoor WiFi access points to support community connectivity with WiFi hotspots, three maritime antennae to connect ferry services, and one Ka-band antennae to provide trunking and backhaul services for the mobile phone network. The network experiences regular outages that may last several hours. 

        

Internet Service Providers 

Are there ISPs available? 

 Yes   

If yes, are they privately or government owned? 

 State owned enterprise 

Dial-up only? 

  No 

Approximate Rates (local currency and USD - $) 

Dial-up 

 N/A 

Broadband 

 Yes 

Max Leasable ‘Dedicated’ Bandwidth 

 $1000 per Mbps 


Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) 

The state-owned Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation (TTC) is the only telecommunication provider on the islands. It provides mobile phone services on Funafuti, with expansion plans to all the remote islands. 

 Connectivity to network is 4G however downtime occurs regularly and may last for hours or days 

For information on MNOs please visit the GSM Association website 

Company 

Number of Agent Outlets by Area 

Network Strength by Area 

Contracted for Humanitarian or Government Cash Transfer 

Programmes? 

Services Offered 

(i.e. Merchant Payment, 

Bulk Disbursement, 

Receive & Make Payment) 

TCC 

1 x Funafuti 

All of Funafuti has strong coverage. Outer islands do not have coverage 

No 

N/A 

 

Jump to top