News - Palau

The Palau National Communications Corp. is in the middle of the largest telecommunications buildout in the country's history, replacing its aging mobile network and laying fiber directly to homes and businesses, as island utilities across the region push to modernize networks that have long lagged behind the U.S. mainland.

President Surangel S. Whipps Jr. escorted Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim of Taiwan to the Rock Islands, where she kayaked and swam on her first visit to Palau.

In Koror alone, there are about a dozen laundromats — a few within a five-minute walk of each other — driven by the country's tourism boom, an expanding hospitality sector, and a pandemic-era pivot toward residential customers.

The latest U.S. Government Accountability Office report of May 5 on the Freely Associated States focused on the fact that the three countries have not yet met certain oversight requirements established by the amended compacts, while U.S. oversight efforts are underway with some delays.

“Two new island getaways just landed,” Philippine Airlines said as it launched its inaugural flights to Saipan and Koror, Palau on March 29.