CHIEF executive officer of the Universal Service Fund (USF) Charlton McFarlane is moving to allay fears that a decline in its revenue could derail its operation.

The issue was first put on the public agenda in March 2020 when then Minister of Technology Fayval Williams admitted in Parliament that the USF’s revenue was on a downward trajectory due to the increasing use of data over voice calls.

At that time, Williams admitted that the USF was finding it more difficult to fulfil its mandate of rolling out Wi-Fi community access points across the island.

But since then, the entity has implemented several creative measures to make up for the reduction in its revenue, which is from a levy on international calls terminating in Jamaica.

Addressing that latest Jamaica Observer Monday Exchange, McFarlane argued that the entity is reaping the benefits and consequence of its success.

“And why I say benefits and consequence is because the USF funding model is predicated on US$0.03 levy on calls terminating in Jamaica, but it is land line calls not voice over [Internet].

“With us continuing to roll out the Wi-Fi infrastructure in Jamaica, the demand for land line calls is significantly reduced. In fact, the data has shown that over the last four years the revenue for the USF dipped by 50 per cent…but there is still revenue coming in,” said McFarlane in response to questions from the Observer.

He pointed out that the USF is maintaining its mandate through support from the Ministry of Finance, directly from the Consolidated Fund, and tapping into reserves it would have built up over the years “when we were earning more than we could actually spend at the time”.

For this fiscal year — based on the Jamaican Public Bodies Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure tabled in Parliament — the USF is slated to get $300 million in direct subvention from the Government and record a net loss of just over $2 billion.

Against that background, McFarlane told Observer editors and reporters that the USF is now looking at what can be done over the long run to ensure that it is sustained.

“The minister has instructed the USF to engage the requisite technical expertise to develop a sustainable funding model. That work is currently being undertaken…and when it is finished I am sure you will hear more from the minister in terms of policy directive and if there will be any legislative amendments to the USF funding model,” declared McFarlane

His comments came hours before Cabinet member now with responsibility for technology Daryl Vaz lauded the performance of the USF, which is now celebrating its 20th year of operation.

Making his contribution to the 2025/26 Sectoral Debate on Tuesday, Vaz highlighted some of the achievements of the USF over the years.

“Through the USF, 100 per cent of the major townships across Jamaica have been outfitted with public Wi-Fi through the Connect-Jamaica Public Wi-Fi Programme, with five new public Wi-Fi hot spots being deployed in the 2024/2025 Financial Year,” said Vaz.

“These activities… are complemented by the [USF] Community Wi-Fi Programme, which, since its launch in 2020, has seen 315 community Wi-Fi hot spots valued at $1.2 billion being successfully installed across the 63 constituencies, serving 235,000 active users across the island, and the numbers continue to grow,” added Vaz.

He told the House that with these strategic initiatives, the Government, through the USF, “continues to drive digital inclusion, ensuring accessible, sustainable, and transformative ICT solutions for all Jamaicans as we strive to achieve a better Jamaica”.