More people in Uruguay have broadband than the rest of Latin America, and that means telcos should invest there

As of 2016, Uruguay had reached a broadband penetration of the population of 27 percent, the highest in the region, and well above the regional average of 12 percent.

Over the past five years, fixed broadband penetration has experienced an unprecedented boost supported by ambitious connectivity policies, which have helped to channel a significant amount of resources into state-controlled local incumbent Antel.

Its rollout of a national fiber to the home network accounts for nearly 70 percent of all the active broadband connections in the country.

On the mobile communications side, Uruguay also ranks high.

The latest GlobalData estimates show at the end of 2016 around 33 percent of the active mobile subscriptions in the country were to 4G/LTE networks.

This is expected to continue increasing rapidly, reaching 72 percent by year-end 2021.

These penetration levels create an ideal environment for telecom operators and others investors to invest in the likes of smart cities in the country.