Speaking to the press at the 3rd Annual IT Governance Conference, Datuk Seri Lim Keng Yaik, minister of Energy, Water and Communications, lamented the limited coverage of broadband, especially in the rural regions. With a population of 25 million, Malaysia has an Internet penetration rate--including broadband access usage--of 4 percent. If the government depended solely on the private sector to provide broadband access, the process "is going to be slow", said Lim.
The minister said he is working on a plan, which will involve using existing government infrastructures such as Schoolsnet, E-government and MyRen (Malaysian Research and Education Network), to ensure broadband connectivity reaches critical mass.
Lim said the plan "has yet to get approval from the Cabinet", but he hopes to be able to present it as soon as possible.
"It’s almost ready,” he added.
According to Lim, this project will be worth "a few hundred million” ringgit and will be partly-funded by Malaysia's Universal Service Program which is aimed at increasing penetration of basic telecommunications services in the "unserved and under-served" areas.
Lim said the project will also involve other ministries responsible for looking after the national ICT (infocomms technology) infrastructure.
Autor: Jennifer Tai
Quelle: Cnet Asia, 06.07.2004
