Following the announcement that the European economy is expected to grow by one per cent during 2014, UTEL, a leading independent research and development company for telecommunications systems, is calling on governments to invest in high-speed broadband solutions, such as fibre, to make sure the predicted recovery is realised.
Despite the improvement forecast in Europe, economic recovery remains slower there than in other regions, including the US and Asia, with no growth in the continent’s economy during the last quarter of 2013. Frank Kaufhold, managing director of UTEL, suggests the roll out of faster broadband internet through fibre is a project governments could invest in to inject energy into the economy and kick start growth, ensuring the continent’s future prosperity.
'The way business is conducted is changing and it will undoubtedly rely on the fast interchange of data, making fast broadband solutions like fibre absolutely essential for future growth,' said Kaufhold. 'Although fibre to the home (FTTH) and fibre to the premises (FTTP) projects are taking place in Europe, the level of investment is just not on a great enough scale. If the European economy is going to continue to grow then this needs to change.'
The importance of ICT and telecommunications to economies is highlighted further by the creation of The Grand Coalition for Digital Jobs in 2013, an initiative that aims to train and recruit people from Europe to fulfil the 900,000 ICT jobs that are expected to be created by 2015.
Kaufhold added: 'Technology is advancing at an incredible rate and governments need to act now to ensure they are not left behind. Investing in fibre helps businesses grow, create new jobs and increase spending for faster economic growth.'
