KUCHING, March 21: Deputy Minister for Utility and Telecommunication (Telecommunication) Datuk Liwan Lagang hopes his ministry will be notified in advance of Federal Deputy Minister of Communications and Digital Teo Nie Ching’s next visit to Sarawak so they can discuss improving Internet coverage in Sarawak.
In a statement today, he said that Ministry of Utility and Telecommunication (MUT) Sarawak only found out about Teo’s recent visit to the region through news reports, implying a missed opportunity for both parties to meet and discuss cooperation in relevant matters.
“In early 2022, the function of telecommunication was vested under the purview of the then Ministry of Utilities, making it what is known today as Ministry of Utility and Telecommunication Sarawak.
“In response to Teo’s intention to work closely with the Sarawak government as reported in the press recently, we hope that she would meet us to discuss on improving Internet coverage in Sarawak.
“Since we only heard of her visit to Sarawak in the news, it would be more meaningful if our ministry be notified of such visit in the future,” Liwan said.
He acknowledged that while the responsibility to develop telecommunication infrastructure lies with the federal government, the Sarawak government still intervened and complemented the efforts of the federal government and spent RM1.89 billion to fast track telecommunication development especially in rural areas.
“This showed our commitment and seriousness to provide full coverage to our people and reduce the digital divide in the rural areas and communities of Sarawak,” he added.
He also noted the media reported Teo as saying that the current 4G network coverage in Malaysia is 97 per cent of populated areas.
However, he pointed out, the current 4G network coverage in Sarawak is only 54 per cent of populated areas.
“There are many rural areas yet to be provided with telecommunication services. Sarawak needs about 7,000 telecommunication towers and structures to achieve full coverage, and we have about 3,500 towers and structures in operation at the moment.
“In this regard, I call for commitment and close cooperation from the federal government especially in providing more funds for the implementation of telecommunication infrastructure in Sarawak.
“We hope upon completion of SMA Rural Telecommunication (Smart) by the Sarawak government and Jalinan Digital Negara (Jendela) by the federal government, the telecommunication coverage in the populated areas will be significantly improved,” he said. — DayakDaily
