LAWAS: The Sarawak government will identify 150 more locations statewide for the installation of the Saluran-MySRBN initiative for greater internet access.
Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg assured this has
been the state government’s intention towards assisting the people in the villages who have limited access to the Internet.
“What is happening in our state now is that there are many telecommunication (telecom) towers but without the satellite dishes.
“The telecom companies (that could provide the Internet services) do not want to go outside the city area (to install it) because it does not bring profits.
“But, I told Tan Sri Datuk Amar Mohamad Morshidi Abdul Ghani (Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation – SDEC) chairman that, let us do it (to provide Internet services) ourselves and Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) will bear the costs.”
He said this when launching the Sarawak Linking Urban Rural and Nation-Sarawak Rural Broadband Network (Saluran-MySRBN) initiative at Kampung Tengah, Trusan on Sunday (Oct 31).
Abang Johari, who is also the GPS chairman, said that his government wanted to ensure that all Sarawakians be they the urban or rural community, are able to enjoy Internet facilities.
“Although the cost of providing the SRBN is quite high, the state government will still pay for it as we need to help the villagers,” he said.
He added that through such initiative, the villagers would be able to connect with others much easier through digital platforms.
“In addition, villagers can conduct businesses and market their products through the mobile applications and thus they would also be able to generate income,” said Abang Johari.
The Saluran-MySRBN initiative is being implemented through the collaboration of various government agencies such as the Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA), Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC) and SAINS, as well as the Federal government – through the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) – to improve the communication network especially in rural and suburban areas.
Wirth the commissioning of Saluran-MySRBN in Kampung Tengah, Trusan here, the villagers are no longer left behind but are connected to the world through better Internet access.
