Shortage of contractors delays full restoration of USF public Wi-Fi network

FALMOUTH, Trelawny — The Universal Service Fund (USF) has fallen short of its target to restore all of its free public Wi-Fi sites destroyed by Hurricane Melissa within a year, with Chief Executive Officer Charlton McFarlane blaming a limited network of specialised suppliers for slowing the recovery.

Hurricane Melissa affected 90 per cent of the 415 public Wi-Fi sites operated or managed by the USF across Jamaica.

On Wednesday McFarlane told reporters that the USF has so far restored more than 80 per cent of these at a cost of $801 million as at the end of September, from the $863 million allocated to restore the network.