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A Data Centre Task Force has been formed to formulate policies and coordinate the development and implementation of data centres in Sarawak. — Photo by Chimon Upon KUCHING (Nov 18): The Ministry of Utility and Telecommunication has formed a Data Centre Task Force aimed at formulating policies and coordinating the development and implementation of data centres in Sarawak, said its minister Dato Sri Julaihi Narawi. He said Sarawak has an advantage in the development of data centres due to its vast land area, sufficient electricity and water supply as well as access to a network of submarine cable systems.
This, he said, is also in addition to Sarawak being situated outside the Pacific Ring of Fire. “This initiative is in line with the Sarawak Digital Economy Blueprint 2030 to encourage the development of technology parks and data centres and subsequently enable Sarawak to become a data centre hub in the region,” he said in his ministerial winding-up speech at the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Sitting here today. He said data centres, which are physical premises used to store, manage and process large-capacity data, play an important role as supporting infrastructure for digital services such as cloud computing, SCS Mobile+, S Pay Global, WhatsApp, Facebook, Shopee, Tiktok, Netflix, YouTube and others.
“All of these digital services have become part of the conveniences that affect our daily lives,” he said. On a related matter, Julaihi said the Ministry of Works has agreed to hand over a fibre optic line to the Sarawak government. He said this temporary fibre line, which was constructed during the Pan Borneo Highway Project to enable telecommunications services to continue until a permanent fibre optic line is fully implemented, was initially proposed to be disposed of.
“The permanent fibre optic line has been completed and since the temporary fibre optic line is still usable, the federal government through the Ministry of Works has agreed to hand over this fibre optic line without any charge to the Sarawak government through my ministry. “My ministry has subsequently handed over this fibre optic line to the Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA) for management, operation and regulatory purposes,” he said. He said that the acquisition of the fibre optic line will provide new connectivity to previously unserved areas as well as an alternative infrastructure for high-speed broadband networks.
On telecommunication towers, Julaihi said that to date, a total of 4,581 towers including telecommunications structures on buildings have been completed in the state. “A total of 4,027 (87.9 per cent) towers are operational (on-air) and the remaining (12.
1 per cent) will be operational in stages until the end of 2025.” He also said that internet service coverage has increased to 84.8 per cent compared to 80.
9 per cent as reported during the last DUN Sitting. “A total of 546 out of 600 Sarawak Multimedia Authority Rural Telecommunication (SMART) telecommunications towers have been completed. “Of the completed towers, 400 SMART towers are operational providing both 4G and Sarawak Rural Broadband Network (MySRBN) services while the remainder will be fully operational in stages by the fourth quarter of 2025,” he said.
In terms of 5G coverage, he said 523 out of 583 5G sites are currently operational with the remainder expected to be operational in the first quarter of next year..
