{"id":410720,"date":"2024-06-27T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-27T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=410720"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-29T14:00:00","slug":"CNMI-Guam-A-Samoa-US-Virgin-Islands-Digital-Equity-Plan-accepted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/CNMI-Guam-A-Samoa-US-Virgin-Islands-Digital-Equity-Plan-accepted\/","title":{"rendered":"CNMI, Guam, A. Samoa, US Virgin Islands\u2019 Digital Equity Plan accepted"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON, D.C.\u2014<\/strong>The U.S. Department of Commerce\u2019s National Telecommunications and Information Administration has accepted Digital Equity plans from American Samoa, Guam, the CNMI, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.<\/p>\n

The Digital Equity Act, part of the Internet for All initiative and a key piece of President Biden\u2019s Investing in America Agenda, provides $2.75 billion to establish three grant programs that promote digital equity and inclusion. The program aims to ensure that all people and communities have the skills, technology, and capacity needed to reap the full benefits of our digital economy.<\/p>\n

Each territory received $150,000 from the State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program to create a plan aimed at addressing disparities in digital access, skills and affordability across the state.<\/p>\n

NTIA has now accepted digital equity plans from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. On March 29, 2024, NTIA launched the $1.44 billion Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program. Under the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), states and territories can apply for funding from President Biden\u2019s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to begin implementation of their accepted digital equity plans.<\/p>\n

In the coming months, NTIA will launch the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program, which will make funds available to a variety of entities, including (for example) some political subdivisions of states, native entities, nonprofits, community anchor institutions, local educational agencies, workforce development organizations, as well as territories.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am incredibly proud to announce that the NTIA has accepted the CNMI\u2019s Digital Equity Action Plan. This achievement underscores our dedication to closing the digital divide and ensuring all residents have access to the tools and skills necessary to thrive in the digital age,\u201d said CNMI Gov. Arnold I. Palacios. \u201cGuided by the CNMI Broadband Policy and Development Office and supported by our local stakeholders and federal partners, we have crafted a plan that will enhance the foundation necessary for a vibrant digital economy. This plan promises to drive growth, foster innovation, and improve the quality of life for everyone in our community. Thank you to everyone involved for helping us take this crucial step toward a more connected and prosperous future.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are glad to learn that our Digital Equity plan has been approved. We are grateful to our stakeholders and those in our community who contributed to this effort,\u201d said American Samoa Commerce director Petti Matila. \u201cWe are looking forward to the implementation phase as there is a great deal of work to be done to ensure our people have the necessary tools and skills needed to leverage the power of and opportunities created by broadband and the internet. Fa\u2019afetai tele lava!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is an exciting first step in laying the foundation for a more digitally resilient territory,\u201d said U.S. Virgin Islands Digital Equity and Inclusion director Jaughna Nielsen-Bobbit. \u201cThis plan was not developed in a vacuum, and we are grateful to the local community stakeholders, mainland digital equity partners, and to the NTIA for their expertise, time, and support in creating a blueprint for the U.S. Virgin Islands to address the digital divide here in the territory. Being disconnected from a connected world is not new to us, so it is crucial that we are strategically investing in our community to ensure that Virgin Islanders have access to the same digital resources, knowledge, and skills as our fellow Americans who reside on the mainland U.S.\u201d (PR)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n


BPD-MarkRabagoEditormark_rabago@saipantribune.comhttps:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6fabda4f7d588bcef37b231eeb2aeae1?s=100&d=mm&r=g
<\/figcaption><\/figure> <\/p>\n

Arnold I. Palacios<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON, D.C.\u2014The U.S. Department of Commerce\u2019s National Telecommunications and Information Administration has accepted Digital Equity…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-410720","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410720","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=410720"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410720\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=410720"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=410720"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=410720"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}