More than 400 telecommunication towers activated in Sarawak — Salleh
KUALA LUMPUR: A total 410 new telecommunication towers have been activated with 3G service coverage in Sarawak while two are at the implementation stage in the state.
Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak said the service was under the Cellular Coverage Expansion initiative and Mobile Broadband which involved the construction of new telecommunication towers and upgrading existing telecommunication tower sin areas which received less service coverage.
“The government is implementing numerous initiatives to boost communication service in Sarawak, especially in rural areas.
A total 831 existing towers have been upgraded in terms of service coverage up to 4 G, while 102 existing towers at still at the upgrading stage.
“As an extension from that, 1,047 towers were also developed commercially around Sarawak which provided service coverage up to 4G,” he said when winding up the debate on the 2018 Supply Bill at the policy stage in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
Salleh said to ensure the development of communication infrastructure was in line with economic development, numerous communications infrastructure development projects had been implemented in Sabah and Sarawak since 2008 involving an estimated RM5 billion in expenditure.
In addition, the government was also implementing the High Speed Broadband Project whereby the infrastructure for the provision of the broadband service with a speed up to 100Mbps was provided in the Sarawak state capital and major towns and it involved the upgrading of 13 exchanges in the state.
“Through the Town Fringe Broadband Project and the Rural Broadband Project, broadband facility with a speed up to 20Mbps in the town fringes and rural areas are provided involving the upgrading of 53 exchanges in Sarawak.
“The government has and is implementing numerous initiatives under the Universal Service Provider to expand cellular coverage aside from upgrading broadband coverage nationwide specifically in rural areas,” he said.
In addition, the government had implemented a submarine fibre optic cable system aimed at increasing the speed of the internet, especially in Sabah and Sarawak with the installation of 4 tarabit per second seabed fibre optic cable network with total overall distance of more than 3,800 km connecting the Peninsula with Sabah and Sarawak.
He said the implementation of the projects would ensure the accommodation of internet service needs for consumers in Sabah and Sarawak and hopefully boost communication services in both states, simultaneously developing the digital economy. The House will sit again today.