In Macedonia, Strengthening IXP.mkâs Peering Infrastructure The Internet Society has been supporting the development of the Internet in Macedonia by collaborating with the Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering (FCSE) of the Saints Cyril and Methodius University in Macedonia on its IXP.mk project. IXPs play a critical role in bringing faster and more affordable Internet, and the Macedonian IXP (IXP.mk) had been established in June 2018 with technical support from a number of stakeholders. Switch and MUX to Strengthen Infrastructure As traffic grew, IXP.mk needed to increase its peering capacity with improved switching capabilities and space for data racks that would allow it to attract new participants to the exchange. In 2020, the Internet Society provided IXP.mk with a switch and two Fiber Optic Multiplexers (Fiber Mux) that enabled an additional peering location to be established in the Telesmart Telekom data center, thereby making it easier for other major networks and Content Distribution Networks to peer with each other. The Fiber Muxes support the transmission of multiple data channels over a single fiber that has been donated by an existing member of IXP.mk.