State of Internet Access in Palau: From Coral Reefs to Starlink
Palau connected to its first undersea fiber link in 2017 via the SEA-US cable, funded by a $25 million ADB loan. A second cable, Palau Cable 2, is set to go live in early 2025 as part of the Echo network. A week-long internet outage followed Typhoon Mawar in mid-2023. The U.S. awarded Palau $35 million in 2023 for nationwide fiber rollout, aiming for completion by 2029.