MANILA—Despite improvements, average mobile and fixed-line internet speeds in the Philippines still fall below the global average, according to a service that tracks access speeds internationally.

Speedtest Global Index said that in terms of mobile internet speed, the Philippines ranks 103rd among 139 surveyed countries.

The country's average mobile internet download speed of 15.06 Megabits per second was far below the global average of 26.12 Mbps.

This was slower than the 15.2 Mbps registered in Zimbabwe, which years ago experienced an economic meltdown under former strongman Rober Mugabe.

The Philippines' mobile internet was also slower than war-torn Syria's (19.48 Mbps).

Norway has the fastest mobile internet with a speed (67.54 Mbps), followed by Canada, Qatar, the Netherlands, and South Korea.

In terms of fixed line internet, the Philippines ranked 101st among 179 countries.

The Philippines' average speed of 19.51 Mbps was much slower than the global average of 57.91 Mbps.

Bangladesh was slightly ahead of the Philippines at 100th place, while Laos was at 84th.

Singapore was the runaway winner in terms of fixed-line internet as it registered average speeds of 199.77 Mbps.

The city-state was followed by Hong Kong, Monaco, Romania, and South Korea.

The Philippines is aiming to boost internet access quality with the introduction of a third major telco player, which can challenge the duopoly of PLDT and Globe.

Mislatel, a joint venture between Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy and China Telecom, won the contract to roll out the third telco.