The Manila Bulletin speculates on turning the archipelago into a Wi-Fi zone: The chairman of a national commission suggested that the technology is almost there to blanket the nation of islands with Internet access. The incumbent telco says that 98 percent of the country has Internet access, but we know from the U.S. market that "98 percent" means lots of things: perhaps that 98 percent of citizens have the ability to get a phone line for dial-up service or that 98 percent of the provinces of the Philippines have at least one high-speed line.
The Philippines still controls Wi-Fi use in the 2.4 GHz spectrum with gradual liberalization. It's not unlicensed, but it's become easier to use, and is legal for personal use in the home. Only three percent of homes in the Philippines have computers with a population of nearly 90 million people--the article states it's the lowest computer penetration in the Asia Pacific region.
This is gradually becoming a reality as telcos began launching wireless connectivity solution that can be accessed nationwide. One example is PLDTWeRoam.com. However, to implement a full-blown wireless mesh network may require multiple wi-fi providers to have some sort of sharing/internal charging so that users will not be concerned whether the provider he or she is subscribed to can be accessed in that particular area.