This commitment was materialized in several moments led by the CEO of Altice Portugal, Alexandre Fonseca - in the areas of innovation, infrastructures, health and social responsibility - which were attended by the President of the Regional Government of Madeira, Miguel Albuquerque.
The signing of five protocols guaranteed the continued expansion of the fiber optic network and the mobile network. These investments exceed 35 million euros over the last four years and position Altice Portugal as the largest investor in technology and communications at the service of Madeirans.
Madeira already has some of the highest coverage rates in the country, and by the end of 2021 it will have 97% fiber optic coverage, which will be practically complete by the end of 2022. To this end, new protocols have been signed with the Municipalities of Funchal, Calheta, Porto Moniz, São Vicente and Ribeira Brava.
Altice Portugal has also invested heavily in the mobile network, which guarantees coverage of around 99.5% on the 4G network on both Madeira Island and Porto Santo Island. A further 12 new stations are planned in Funchal, Santa Cruz, Ribeira Brava and Câmara de Lobos and, during this visit, the new mobile site was inaugurated, which will serve the people of the village of Tábua in Ribeira Brava.
The trip also marked the 25th anniversary of the arrival of MEO's mobile network in Madeira, a milestone that marks the long relationship between Altice Portugal and its brands and the region and its inhabitants.
In the health sector, Altice Portugal is also committed to sharing its know-how with the medical community and the people who live in the autonomous region. In this context, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the Regional Health Secretariat, which provides for the setting up of a working group and the carrying out of a diagnosis of needs and synergies in the areas of telemedicine, procedural and administrative simplification and digitalization.
In the area of Social Responsibility, and as Altice Portugal has done throughout the pandemic, various items of equipment have been donated to social institutions in the region. Training, knowledge, accessibility and technology at the service of greater causes are part of AlticePortugal 's genetic code.The offer of equipment to social or hospital institutions and security forces arises in this context and in order to mitigate inequalities in access to technology at the service of society.
According to Alexandre Fonseca, CEO, "Altice Portugal has invested heavily in recent years to provide the archipelago with the largest and most advanced communications networks, supporting and leveraging economic and social development. It was 25 years ago that Altice made its mobile network available in Madeira for the first time and the region will continue to be one of our priorities in the transition to the fifth generation of mobile communications. In this sense, our commitment to Madeira is to continue to be a solid partner for innovation and to guarantee access to the best infrastructures as an engine for generating value for Madeiran companies and populations."
This new visit by Altice Portugal's Executive Committee to Madeira reinforces the company's commitment to its six strategic axes - Investment, Innovation, Proximity, Quality of Service, Social Responsibility and Sustainability - helping to ensure excellent connectivity and promote the continuous improvement of its customers' experience throughout the mainland and islands.
Through a totally private, autonomous and voluntary investment - in the case of Madeira, Altice Portugal is the only private operator with its own transmission capacity, via submarine cable - the company continues to fulfill its mission of bringing the best technology and innovation to the entire national territory, contributing to a one-speed Portugal.