To provide kids with greater bandwidth, the Queensland government will increase its investment on state school connections by $187 million.
The average bandwidth accessible each student is currently 25Kbps, but that will increase to 5Mbps per student by 2026 under a five-year agreement signed today with Telstra.
According to Telstra, the deal will also provide rural and remote schools with connection speeds comparable to those in Brisbane.
The initial boost will be pushed out over the following 18 months to the state’s 1258 public schools, with 40 schools receiving their first fibre connections.
Telstra Enterprise chief customer officer John Ieraci stated that it will assist more than only schools.
“This significant infrastructure investment will also provide connectivity advantages to all other Queensland government departments and companies that will have access to the enhanced networks,” he said.
The agreement, according to Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, “will guarantee teachers have access to the newest digital technology and resources for their classrooms: everything they need to offer a world-class education.”
Telstra got a $328 million contract to update NSW schools in 2020, while Victoria paid $100 million to enhance its schools’ internet in 2021.
