KUCHING: Sarawak is on the right track in its pursuit of the digital economy, and it is fortunate to have started its journey a few years earlier.
Had the state just started the journey now during the current Covid-19 pandemic, many problems would likely have come up.
“The objective of digital economy is to grow using technology and to ensure that people and businesses benefit from it,” said a board member of Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA), Tan Sri Datuk Amar Mohamad Morshidi Abdul Ghani.
He was speaking during a webinar session entitled ‘Post Covid-19: Moving Towards Digital Economy – Are We Ready?’ hosted by the Malaysia Productivity Corporation (MPC) on Friday.
He explained that the Sarawak Digital Economy Strategy 2018-2022 was developed based on engagements with the public, businesses, and the government, as well as visits to various countries to learn more about digital economy.
He said that the various initiatives thus far would help to push the state digital economy at an accelerated rate.
He said that the state government had embarked into sectors used globally now, such as Sarawak’s very own e-wallet, Sarawak Pay, which he said had already achieved about nine million transactions since launch.
“They have also introduced Sarawak ID which allows people to access government services securely,” he said.
Morshidi added that agencies such as Sarawak Information Systems Sdn Bhd (SAINS) and Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC) would facilitate the digitalisation of government services and the private sector respectively.
He emphasised that initiating digital economy involved key enablers such as digital inclusivity, digital infrastructure, and talent management.
He said that the state government through SMA had put up more telecommunication towers throughout the state especially in ‘blind spots’ to increase connectivity, broadband connection, and internet speed.
“It is hoped that by 2021 and 2022, we would be able to reach over 90 percent connectivity throughout Sarawak with high-speed broadband,” he said.
In terms of inclusivity, he said that various agencies had been working on raising public awareness of digital economy and its benefits.
According to Morshidi, one of the challenges was trying to get as many people as possible to get on the bandwagon and understand that digital economy could benefit them in terms of efficiency, return on investment, and so on.
He said the significant difference between rural and urban capabilities and facilities also posed different sets of challenges to address.
He was of the view that applying an agile regulatory framework could support the journey towards digital economy, but emphasised that this had to be balanced with security.
“We may have to work on how to achieve this balance as well,” he said.
The webinar session was moderated by MPC director-general Datuk Abdul Latif Abu Seman.
