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INTERNET PLAN HAS A MOUNTAIN TO CLIMB
Published in NEW STRAITS TIMES (LOCAL NEWS), 1 June 2008.
KUCHING: The ambitious plan to have 50 per cent Internet access in the state by 2010 is a daunting task given the size, terrain and scattered rural population here.
Moving deeper into the interior, the hills and valleys pose problems to the laying of infrastructure, particularly the line of sight needed for wireless connectivity.
"There are a lot of issues due to the rough terrain.
"It is a daunting task but I believe it can be done, provided government funding is there," said Datuk Abdul Hamed Sepawi, chairman of Danawa Sdn Bhd (Dynamic Applied Network and Wireless Application Sdn Bhd).
Danawa is collaborating with Sacofa Sdn Bhd, a telecommunications common facilities and fibre optic backbone infrastructure provider, to implement the plan, especially in rural areas, under its "deConnexion" initiative.
Several major operators were reluctant to extend their services to rural areas here owing to the challenges in deployment, he said.
However, on a brighter note, Abdul Hamed said Danawa and Sacofa were fortunate as there had been a lot of encouragement and community support.
Within 15 months of its operation, residents of cities like Miri, Kuching and Sibu and in rural areas such as Mukah, Matu, Daro, Betong, Debak, Matadeng, Dalat, Oya and Sarikei, Tanjung Manis, Semop, Bintangor and Julau are already enjoying "deConnexion" high speed broadband.
Miri is the first wireless city in Sarawak.
"The new connectivity is changing a lot of things, particularly for the rural folk.
"They can now book airline tickets online without having to journey to the town or city.
"We are hoping they will use it as a medium to advertise services that they wish to offer, like homestay programmes."
Abdul Hamed said the connectivity would empower the people to progress further.
Danawa and Sacofa are currently offering the "deConnexion" broadband service for free to the people throughout the state.
Abdul Hamed was also passionate about Internet facilities being enjoyed by rural students.
"Give them another one or two years, and they will be able to easily access the cyberworld, with all the community networks like Friendster, MySpace or Facebook.
"These students can be in contact with friends from all over the country and even the world.
"I know that students are interested in these networks through which they can share information and knowledge," he said.
"It is like a new tool for them to communicate, not just among friends but with the international community."
Danawa is bringing in a lot of educational content, including the Cambridge ICT starter programme developed with the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom.
"We are bringing these to schools and library systems to empower teachers and students to do capacity building on their own.
"They need not go to cities or towns any longer as with the higher fuel cost, it can be expensive doing so regularly," he said.
In the Mukah division alone, 13 schools are linked to the Internet through the e-Education and e-Library programme to complement the Education Ministry's efforts.
"Our plan is to extend broadband services to the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy and to link another 26 schools there with Internet access and video-conferencing facilities.
"This is important as the area is going to undergo massive transformation and will require high potential human capital in the coming years," Abdul Hamed added. - Bernama
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