By Adrian Lim
KUCHING, Sept 6: The Sarawak government will upgrade Internet connection with high speed Internet, covering approximately 90 per cent urban and rural areas in the State next year.
Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg said the approach will be implemented through a connectivity network linking Sarawak’s urban and rural areas with the rest of Malaysia using a channel with the collaboration of four government agencies.
“This is an approach which I have instructed Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA), Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC), Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd (Sains) to implement.
“They will have to collaborate and we will increase the Internet speed and access to all the areas either in city or rural areas.
“Our target is by 2022, at least we can cover 90 per cent of the areas with high speed Internet connection,” he said in his speech during the launching of Land and Survey’s Integrity and Innovation Day 2021 at the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) complex today.
Abang Johari noted good Internet connection is crucial to acquire information such as data on town planning, usage of land and the quality of soil for agriculture development.
He added agriculture development and real estate development were two activities which contracted one another in terms of land use.
“Therefore, we need to obtain accurate information as fast as possible.
“With that, the government is upgrading the Internet connectivity using an approach which is called (Saluran),” he said.
On another note, Abang Johari said the Land and Survey Department were able to innovate and transformed through digitalisation in the past few years.
He cited Land and Survey’s electronic system eLasis was the best transformation of the civil service especially in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Abang Johari who is also Finance and Economic Planning Minister stressed that it is important to transform the civil service through digitalisation as well as adopt the latest technology devices in the government so that the people can benefit from it.
Earlier, Land and Survey director Abdullah Julaihi in his speech disclosed that the department had surveyed a total of 999,853 hectares of land in Sarawak as of Aug 31, 2021.
He added out of that, 776,226 hectares of land have been gazetted under Section 6 of the Sarawak Land Code.
Among those present at the launching of Land and Survey’s Integrity and Innovation Day 2021 were Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, Minister in the Chief Minister’s Department (Integrity and Ombudsman) Datuk Talib Zulpilip, State Secretary Datuk Amar Jaul Samion and Urban Development and Natural Resources permanent secretary Datu Zaidi Mahdi. — DayakDaily
