Belgium is well on its way to meeting European connectivity targets by 2030, but fibre-optic rollout needs to be accelerated. Agoria is calling for more flexible rules for the telecommunications sector.

In its second annual Digital Decade report, the European Commission ranks Member States on how far they are in meeting connectivity targets. The Commission believes it is time for a wake-up call, as many Member States need to step up their efforts to meet the targets. The picture for Belgium is generally positive, although there is room for improvement.

Our country is doing well in the rollout of “gigabit internet” and 5G networks. 96 percent of Belgian internet users have access to internet speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s and 95 percent also have access to 5G networks (outdoors). Here, we seem to be well on track to reach the goal of 100 percent coverage by 2030.

However, our country is lagging behind when it comes to fiber optics. Although the fiber optic coverage rate increased from 17 to 25 percent in 2023, we are still well below the European average of 64 percent. According to the technology association Agoria, it is not the fault of telecom companies: they invest up to thirty percent of their turnover in infrastructure work, and in no other sector is this share higher.

Smoother rules for telecommunications

Agoria believes that policy should help the telecommunications sector to accelerate the rollout of fibre optics. Tax burdens and complex administrative procedures all too often lead to delays. In order to achieve the EU’s fibre optics targets, simpler procedures and a lower tax threshold for investments in network infrastructure are necessary.

Although Belgium is not doing badly in the rollout of 5G, I could still do better. Agoria fears that the capacity of 5G networks will soon reach its limits due to the strict radiation standards. According to Belgian tradition, these radiation standards are different in Flanders, Brussels and Wallonia. A call to the next legislature to revise the standards.

“The Belgian telecommunications sector is ready and will continue to make unprecedented financial efforts in the coming years to build a first-class digital infrastructure. Our request to politicians and to the new governments: Help us bring Belgium back to the top. Remove obstacles that hinder the further expansion of mobile and fixed networks,” says Danny Goderis, Senior Business Group Leader Telecom at Agoria.

We recently made an assessment of how far we have come with 5G in Belgium and Europe after five years. What 5G can mean, especially in an industrial context 5G StandaloneWe were able to discover this up close in the port of Antwerp.