Focus on public-private tie-ups to achieve Vision 2020/25: IDC

KUALA LUMPUR: International Data Corporation (IDC) Asean is calling for the new government to focus on public-private collaborations to achieve Vision 2020/25.

As the initial Vision 2020 set higher goals to transform the country’s society and economy, the public sector needs to step up to set the direction and planning towards building a balanced ecosystem through collaborations and creating an advanced economy.

Earlier this year, IDC revealed that Malaysia’s IT spending is expected to reach US$10 billion (RM40.9 billion) by end of 2018, with 70-75% of that still in hardware. However, the investment in digital infrastructure, software, and expertise are the fundamental areas for public sector to bridge the digital divide and drive economic growth towards Vision 2020/2025.

IDC Asean managing director Sudev Bangah said as the nation aims at establishing a scientific and progressive society, the most cutting-edge research, innovations and technologies for the country is needed to achieve these goals.

“Ultimately, the public sector should start considering how the ICT industry can fully benefit from the ‘digital economy’ as well as create economic areas of new growth whether in jobs, sectors or physical locations. A joint effort between the public and private sector will create the foundation to increase the gross domestic product (GDP), foreign investment, technological experience and expertise in the country,” he said in a statement.

IDC Asia Pacific research director Internet of Things (IoT) and telco Randy Roberts said that Malaysia is one of the countries that has organically been moving towards being extra opportunistic in the utilisation of ICT.

“The new government should implement new ways to achieve the vision especially in areas of research and development, infrastructure and science and technology. We have to start identifying how emerging technologies, such as augmented and virtual reality, cognitive/AI systems, next-gen security, IoT and robotics can create new value for Malaysia to be on the same footing as other developing countries.”

Although Malaysia is still ahead of most developing countries in digital readiness, the government should set an aggressive objective to be equivalent to leading countries in the region such as South Korea and Singapore.

According to IDC’s Market Perspective: Nations and Internet of Things: A Comparative Assessment, Malaysia is ranked number eight out of 13 Asia Pacific countries in terms of IoT readiness based on country GDP, government effectiveness, innovation, loT spending and lCT spending.