Secretary General of the ITU, His Excellency Houlin Zhao

Distinguished Head of Delegations

Distinguished delegates

Ladies and Gentlemen

A very good afternoon to all

1. I would like to express my appreciation to the ITU for allowing Malaysia to address the Sixth World Telecommunication/ICT Policy Forum today.

• The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly upended the global economy, but at the same time has brought to the forefront the vital role of Telecommunication and ICTs in cushioning the resulting economic and social impact.

• Even as many member states look towards transitioning from a pandemic to an endemic phase, the after-effects of this black swan event will have fundamentally changed the way we live, learn, work and play. More than ever, telecommunications and ICT services will be the leading driver in every member state’s national agenda.

• It is in this landscape that Malaysia welcomes the 6^th WTPF theme and discussions on “Policies for mobilising new and emerging telecommunications/ ICTs for sustainable development.”

• While Malaysia wasn’t spared the effects of the pandemic, it has served as a catalyst for the acceleration of our nation’s digitalisation agenda.  The Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint (MyDIGITAL) was introduced in February this year to position Malaysia as a regional leader to achieve inclusive, responsible and sustainable socioeconomic development by 2030.  It is a 10-year blueprint which includes action plans that adopt a whole-of-nation approach to take Malaysia to the next stage of growth and development.

• As a start, the Government will adopt digital-native and cloud-first strategies to accelerate digital transformation in the public sector. As early as 2022, this transformation will see up to 80 percent usage of cloud storage in the government. It is envisioned that Cloud technology will bring about the use of Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things and other emerging technologies to better manage the delivery of government and public services to our citizens.

Ladies and Gentleman,

• For this to happen, ubiquitous and high quality digital connectivity will be required.  The Jalinan Digital Negara (JENDELA) initiative was launched to accelerate Malaysia’s digital connectivity, narrow the digital divide and provide quality and inclusive telecommunication services to our citizens, whilst preparing the country for 5G. JENDELA is a comprehensive 5-year plan with two distinct phases. In Phase 1 from 2020-2022, it seeks to achieve the following:
  • Increase 4G coverage from 91.8% to 96.9% in populated areas.
  • Increase mobile broadband speed from 25 Mbps to 35 Mbps.
  • To achieve 7.5 million premises nationwide with access to gigabit speed fixed broadband.
  • Sunset 3G by end 2021,
  • 5G planning and implementation for commercial services in phases starting end 2021.

Phase 2, which covers the period 2023 and beyond; envisages the use of Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) and fit for purpose technologies to address remaining gaps in the digital divide. 

• In preparing for the Digital Economy, Malaysia will also improve its interconnection ecosystem infrastructure and national backbone to attract the setting up of data centres, internet exchange points and international connectivity businesses to Malaysia. This policy direction will increase Malaysia’s competitiveness in the region through improved international internet data connectivity, as well as investments in hyper scale data centres and internet exchange points throughout the country.

Ladies and Gentleman,

• Malaysia takes this opportunity to renew our support for the initiatives and efforts of the ITU, and we look forward to serve the membership to foster dynamic growth towards achieving the objectives and targets outlined in the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals 2030 through the use of telecommunications and ICT services and technologies.

1. We wish everyone a meaningful and fruitful discussion.

Thank you and stay safe.