KAPIT: Efforts to bridge the digital divide between rural and urban areas will take a giant leap forward with 600 Sarawak Multimedia Authority Rural Telecommunication (SMART) sites to be completed by 2024.
It is ultimately aimed at giving rural residents equal access to participate in the digital economy.
Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC) chairman Tan Sri Datuk Amar Morshidi Abdul Ghani said 51 of the SMART projects will be implemented here.
He said 14 of the projects would come under Phase 1 with the rest to be completed under Phase 2.
“SMART in Ng Sekukut here is among the 300 SMART sites that are expected to be fully commissioned in stages by 2023,” he said at the launching of SMART at Rh Empawi, Ng Sekukut, yesterday.
“Another 300 sites are in various stages of implementation and expected to be fully completed by 2024.
“With the completion of 600 SMART sites from Sematan up to Lawas, 93.6 per cent of populated areas in Sarawak will be covered.”
“There are also 16 locations in Pelagus, Katibas, Bukit Goram, Belaga and Murum that have received Sarawak Rural Broadband Network (MySRBN) services.”
Utility and Telecommunication Minister Datuk Julaihi Narawi who represented Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg officiated at the event.
He also said the launching of SMART highlights the government’s commitment to addressing and enhancing connectivity in rural Sarawak.
“This SMART initiative at Sekukut opens the world of opportunities to the Kapit community where they can now participate in the digital economy by utilising the network provided to access the e-commerce platform.
“On the other hand, other businesses can now choose Ulu Yong, Kapit as one of their business destinations due to its seamless communication.
“SDEC is proud to launch this SMART and we hope that the community will make full use of the facility provided by the government of Sarawak positively by participating aggressively in our digital economy and improving their livelihoods,” he said.
The Sarawak, Linking, Urban, Rural and Nation (SALURAN) is an initiative under the Sarawak government which aims to bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas by improving 4G coverage in rural areas by enabling consumers to use data services and make calls seamlessly.
SMART and MySRBN are among the components of the SALURAN initiative.
Morshidi added that with the launching of SMART, all the network operators such as DiGi, Maxis, Celcom and UMobile would now be able to leverage on the state-invested infrastructure and equipment to expand their coverage footprint to rural areas by capitalising on the Multi-Operator Core Network (MOCN) technology.
“With this technology, the operating cost for the mainstream operators can be reduced significantly and shared equally.
“Apart from providing mobile services, the SMART initiative also enables home broadband service through MySRBN.
“With MySRBN, the entire family can now have access to the internet, the backbone of the digital economy,” he said.
