MALAYSIA BANKS ON ICT TO MEET 2020 DEVELOPMENT GOALS

By Robin Hicks | 23 February 2010

Malaysia’s Government CIO has hailed ICT as a “key enabler” to fulfil Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s mission to transform Malaysia into a developed nation by 2020. Speaking at the FutureGov Forum Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday (23rd February 2010), Dr Nor Aliah Zahri, Government CIO and Deputy Director General of the Malaysian Administration Modernisation & Planning Unit (MAMPU), said that the 2020 goal was a “reasonable target to attain”.

Malaysia’s National Broadband Plan, which aims to see household broadband internet penetration rise from 26 per cent to 50 per cent by the end of this year (2010), will play a big part in connecting the country of 23 million people, Dr Aliah noted. If this target is met – Malaysia’sGDP, which has been sluggish during the global economic downturn, could grow by 1.2 per cent, she said.

“We acknowledge that we face significant challenges,” Dr Aliah told delegates. “But we are seeing positive change as Malaysia continues to transform into an information-centred economy by focusing on innovation, value and high skills.”

The Government Transformation Roadmap Plan, introduced this year to improve government services, will help keep the 2020 vision on track, Dr Aliah said. “This is a bold and unprecedented plan for every ministry to ensure that every citizen enjoys the fruits of a growing nation,” she said.

Part of the plan is “Connected government”, an initiative launched in 2007 to boost information sharing, integration and interoperability among government agencies, and strengthen and unify ICT infrastructure. “We want to move towards zero face-to-face interaction for citizens for selected agencies as more services move online,” said Dr Aliah.

Another strategy has been to focus on a few “high-impact projects” that will deliver immediate results. One of the most successful to date is MySMS, which gives Malaysians one number – 15888 - to text government with complaints or queries and receive news about new services. The service already has 1.4 million users.

Similar in aim to MySMS is MyID, which enables Malaysians to use a single reference number when dealing with government agencies. Launched in January 2010, 760 services have been launched which use the MyID service to date.

Dr Aliah explained that the progress of these projects, and the public sector as a whole, will be closely monitored by giving the highest performing agencies a “Public Sector Trust Mark” which citizens or businesses can use to gauge transparency.

“If these initiatives are wholeheartedly embraced, the hope of the Malaysian government is that we will move towards a more systemic excellence culture,” she said.

“Malaysia’s public sector will continue to transform to deliver higher performance to meet the 2020 goal. But we still need to change the way the civil service operates. E-government in Malaysia is well advanced, and it should be an integral component of a much broader mission to deliver the transformation agenda.”

Malaysia was ranked 32nd in the United Nations E-Government Survey 2010 last month, moving up two places on its 2008 rank. Malaysia is the fifth highest placed Asian country in the rankings, behind Japan, Bahrain, Singapore and South Korea.

FutureGov Forum Malaysia is an annual event organised by FutureGov magazine in close cooperation with the Malaysian government authorities.

For more information on FutureGov Forum Malaysia visit the event website

Using ICT to compete in the global economy

By JOHN LOH
johnloh@thestar.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: Local businesses must make use of the latest information and communication technology (ICT) solutions to enhance their productivity and to compete in the global economy, said SME CorpMalaysia CEO Datuk Hafsah Hashim.

She said one of the criteria for developed countries was that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) should contribute to at least 40% of the gross domestic product (GDP), but local SMEs currently contributed 31% to GDP.

“This means that SMEs have to grow 1% or more per annum to reach the desired 40% by 2020 (the year Malaysia aims to achieve a developed-nation status). We need a leapfrog growth driven by innovation and productivity,” she said at the launch of Microsoft's Office 365 cloud computing service.

The launch marked the beginning of a private-public partnership between SME Corp and Microsoft Malaysia to enhance the take-up of cloud computing among Malaysian businesses.

Office 365 is Microsoft's newest ICT solution that utilises cloud computing to integrate business function over four primary products - office, sharepoint online, exchange online, and lync online.

“SME Corp and Microsoft will also promote the cloud service through joint roadshows as well as a Microsoft booth in SME Corp's new one-stop referral centre in KL Sentral,” Microsoft Malaysia managing director Ananth Lazarus told StarBiz.

Hafsah also said SME Corp would use the SME Competitiveness Rating for Enhancement (Score) programme to evaluate the ICT effectiveness of SMEs. SME Corp will take the lead in adopting cloud computing by using Office 365 in their KL Sentral office.

Mosti task force to tackle ICT issues

KUALA LUMPUR, Apr 23 (The Star) -- The Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry (Mosti) has formed a task force to look into pressing ICT issues such as the slow national rollout of broadband.

“The task force had its first meeting this month to identify the various (information and communications technology) issues; among these is the slow rollout of broadband,” said Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili on Monday.

According to the National Broadband Plan, 50% of the population must have access to superfast Internet connections by next year but penetration is lingering at the 26% mark now.

Known officially as The Task Force on the ICT industry, it will identify problems, formulate solutions and present these to Mosti, which will then decide whether or not to implement the suggestions.

Broadband rollout is too slow, especially in Sabah and Sarawak, Ongkili said.

He said the Universal Service Provision (USP) fund should be used if the slowdown in those states is due to lack of financing.

Totalling RM3bil now, the USP fund was set up about a decade ago to finance the introduction of telephony and broadband services to underserved areas and groups in the country.

Due to their isolated locations, these underserved areas were largely being bypassed by telecommunications companies that preferred the more profitable urban areas.

In view of that, the Government made it mandatory for all telcos to contribute 6% of revenue generated from their services to the fund every year.

Make heads roll

The Association of the Computer and Multimedia Industry of Malaysia (Pikom) chimed in with its ideas to boost the flagging broadband rollout.

Its chairman, David Wong, said the Government should revoke the licences of WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) broadband licensees that have failed to meet their targets.

“There are four licensees and not all have delivered (on the conditions set by the Government in the licences),” Wong said. He declined to be more specific.

Industry researcher IDC believes some WiMAX licensees are taking a wait-and-see attitude over the rollout of their infrastructure and services because of the huge capital involved.

According to IDC, it takes anywhere from RM100,000 to RM1mil to set up a base-station and the WiMAX licensees will need hundreds of base-stations.

The four licensees are Packet One Network Sdn Bhd, Y-Max Networks Sdn Bhd, Asiaspace Sdn Bhd, and Redtone International Bhd.

Wong said the issue should be brought up at the next task force meeting.

“We need to have a review; find out why some of the WiMAX players are slow to roll out,” he said. “We must know if it’s a question of finance or something else. Only then can the (appropriate) action be taken.”

The task force meets every two months. It comprises representatives from Pikom, the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC), the International Trade and Industry Ministry, the Information, Communications, Culture and Arts Ministry, applied research body Mimos, CyberSecurity Malaysia, and several others.

Another pressing ICT issue that the task force will be looking into is the country’s human resource pool.

It believes that there needs to be programmes that better match retrenched workers to new jobs.

“There should also be (more) government programmes to find alternative employment for these affected workers,” said Wong.

National ICT month

Earlier, Ongkili officiated at the launch of the inaugural National ICT Month (NIM) 2009, to be held from July 20 to Aug 20 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.

Pikom hopes the event will help replicate some of the buzz that the industry experienced during last year’s World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT) which was hosted by Malaysia.

WCIT is a forum that brings together global leaders in business, government and academia for the exchange of ideas on ICT and industry policies. It is hosted by different countries every two years.

NIM 2009, the brainchild of Pikom, will include a three-day leadership summit and exhibition, an eWaste recycling campaign, and a month-long buy-online campaign.

Pikom will be launching an ICT mall in cyberspace as part of the buy-online campaign. The campaign is to encourage consumers to shop on the Web.

The association will collaborate with several online merchants to provide discounts and incentives for consumers for the duration of the campaign.

“We intend to spend a few hundred thousand ringgit to promote the event and we hope (many) e-commerce retailers will participate,” said Wong.

“We are used to seeing online campaigns by AirAsia and Malaysia Airlines but where are the other e-commerce merchants?”

Wong added that by participating in the buy-online campaign, these merchants would also be raising their profiles.

NIM 2009 will cost Pikom RM1.6mil to hold and a national ICT strategic review report will be released during the leadership summit at the event.

“The objective of the inaugural publication is to provide details on the Malaysian ICT sectoral outlook,” added Wong.

Pikom hopes to make NIM an annual event. It is being supported by Mosti and MDeC, the caretaker of the country’s MSC Malaysia initiative.

The governmental bodies of ICT in Malaysia

There are 2 main ministries governing the information and communication technology sector in Malaysia, which are:

1. Ministry of Energy, Communications and Multimedia (MECM)

2. Ministry of Sceince, Technology & Information (MOSTI)

MECM

Malaysia was one of the pioneers amongst Asian countries to establish a new federal ministry, Ministry of Energy, Communications and Multimedia. The main function of this Ministry is to spearhead and promote the growth of information and communication technology (ICT) with the support of several agencies, including the famous Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (or MCMC) established in 1998.

Our daily energy and communication providers, e.g. TNB, TM, Maxis, Streamyx, Postal Service, Astro…are governed by MECM. This ministry is the one who issues licences to regulate the ICT industry.

MOSTI

Ministry of Science, Technology & Information is another ministry established for the purpose of ”Harnessing Science and Technology through Innovation (STI) and human capital to value-add the agricultural and industrial sectors for economic advancement, particularly through Biotechnology, Information and Communications Technology (ICT).”

Amongst other the famous agencies under MOSTI are:

-MIMOS Bhd (MIMOS) -Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC) -SIRIM Bhd (SIRIM) -Technology Park Malaysia Corporation Sdn. Bhd . (TPM) -Malaysia Network Information Centre (MYNIC) -Malaysia Venture Capital (MAVCAP) -Malaysia Debt Ventures Berhad (MDV) -Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC)

MOSTI through its agents provides a comprehensive facilities to help the growth of our ICT industry. They provide fund and infrastructure to meet the need of the ICT sectors.

These 2 ministries have their own role to play though both are focusing on the same area i.e. ICT sector.

As a blogger MCMC seems to be the “most relevant” body to us. I will tell you why in my next post.

Tags: Malaysian Cyber Law

Link : http://www.laweddie.com/wordpress/the-governmental-bodies-of-ict-in-malaysia/

ICT issues in Malaysia

Nowadays, globalization and digital convergence in the emerging knowledge society has raised complex ethical, legal and societal issues. So that, we are faced with the complex questions regarding the freedom of access to information, freedom of expression, the right to privacy, intellectual property rights, and cultural diversity. ICT exist as an instrumental need of all humans for gathering of knowledge and information, and as such should be guaranteed as a basic to all human beings. Information technology is impacting all walks of life all over the world. However, the rapid development of ICT globally also has led the growth of new forms of national and transnational crimes such as the digital divide, cybercrime, digital security and privacy concerns, all of which have affected people’s lives either directly or indirectly.

In general, ethics is a moral philosophy where a person makes a specific moral choice and sticks to it. ICT ethics are not exceptional from the general view of ethics, but, it means moral guidelines to refer when using the computer and computer networks such as internet. In a world where information and communication technology has come to define how people live and work, and has critically affected culture and values, it is important for us to review ethical issues, as well as social responsibility.

So, there exist so many ICT ethical issues nowadays. Such ethical issues included unemployment issues, crime issues, loss of privacy, intellectual property issues, digital divide issues, professional ethics issues and etc. ICT assists and extends the ability of mankind to capture, process, store, understand, use, create, and disseminate information at the speed and scale which never thought possible before. Some of the changes and impacts of ICT are obvious, but many are subtle.

For the unemployment issues, that is the automation of work has caused creative destruction by eliminating some vocations and creating new ones. Such as the rapid development of artificial intelligent, it result the employment rate of a nation keep decreasing. It is because the artificial intelligent also can do tasks which a normal person can do. For the crime issues, as an example, the stolen and counterfeit ATM cards are used to steal millions of dollars each year throughout the region. The anonymity of the machines makes some crimes easier and creates many new types of crimes. Besides that, some transactions are transmitted and recorded in databases at hospitals, banks, various organization which in the private or public sector. If they are not securely guarded, the contents of electronic communication and databases which provide important and private information will easily stolen by unauthorized individuals and organizations and this will cause the loss of privacy issues. As an example, the nowadays popular social website “Facebook”. We edited so much data into the databases of Facebook,, and try imagine if our accounts get stole by someone and Facebook has announced it will shared our data with other organizations.

As a conclusion, the rapid development of ICT brings many benefits and also issues for us. What we can do is try to overcome such ICT issues challenges. I hope that, everyone can use the technology in the good ways by not produced such much ICT issues to this world.

By : Michael Chua
Link : http://webtechmic.blogspot.com/2010/03/ict-issues-in-malaysia.html