SIMUNJAN: The launching of the Sarawak Linking Urban, Rural and Nation-Sarawak Rural Broadband Network (SALURAN-MySRBN) initiative will increase digital connectivity and economy in the district of Simunjan, said Chief Minister Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg.

He said Simunjan is the only MySRBN centre in the area that will provide free Internet service and assist development of the area and surrounding areas.

"Simunjan is often said to be a blind spot and sometimes there is no signal. So, MySRBN will provide facilities to communicate via the Internet. This is what we are implementing in Simunjan, including in nearby areas.

"If we want to develop this state, we have no choice but to use new technologies... agriculture, marketing, business and education will go digital, so we want connectivity between us," he said at the launch of the SALURAN-MySRBN initiative today.

Abang Johari also stressed that the declaration of Gedong as a new district near Simunjan would boost development in both areas in a more organised and structured manner.

"Gedong and Simunjan are like siblings and are integrated with basic facilities, meaning our development is more organised and structured so we can give the best service to the people," he added.

MySRBN uses the Fixed Wireless Broadband (FWB) technology by leveraging on the existing infrastructure to enable the rural and suburban population in Sarawak to access Internet, with speeds of up to 30Mbps and unlimited acces.

The implementation of the MySRBN project through the Sarawak government's allocation to the Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC) is aimed at ensuring that the high-speed broadband network coverage in rural and suburban areas in the state increases to 93.6 per cent by end of 2022.

The SDEC, Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA) and Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) are the implementing agencies in the construction of SALURAN telecommunication towers.

-- BERNAMA