Manyin (front row, fifth right) and Chong (front row, fourth right) together with heads of participating agencies and IBM consultants in a group photo.
KUCHING: Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) infrastructure is the key to close the great urban and rural divide in Sarawak.
In pointing this out, Minister of Education, Science and Technological Research Dato Sri Michael Manyin Jawong said the ‘divide’ was not confined to socio-economic development but affected more complex measures of access today, including but not limited to digital technology, education, employment and so on.
“It is very tough for Sarawak because we are taking the ambitious path in by-passing the Third Industrial Revolution (IR3.0) into Industry 4.0,” he told a press conference yesterday.
“The connectivity, both roads and telecommunication infrastructure, is crucial to allow our people especially in the rural areas to access everything including the knowledge they need, which are readily available in the cyberspace, so as to transform,” he said.
The world is at the beginning of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0) powered by cloud, social, mobile, Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) along with increasing computer power and data, he noted, saying Sarawak has no choice but embark on digital economy to leapfrog and become the most advanced state in Malaysia by 2030.
“The question now is – are we prepared to reach our goal because the challenges ahead will only get tougher. That’s why Sarawak welcomes and is keen to engage digital industry experts and specialists across the world to help Sarawak realise its digital economy transformation,” he added.
Manyin said this at the closing ceremony of the IBM Corporate Service Corps (CSC) Malaysia 10: Kuching, Sarawak held at Menara Pelita at The Isthmus, Off Jalan Bako here.
“We welcome any ideas and recommendations from industry leaders like IBM that can act as a catalyst for the state’s transformation,” he said.
“With such collaborations, we hope it will help position Sarawak towards becoming the most advanced state in Malaysia by 2030,” he added.
Sarawak, he observed, has abundance of natural resources but lacked the human capital to advance its development.
“While the government is committed to set up the connectivity with RM1 billion allocated for ICT infrastructure, we also need to capitalise on human capital simultaneously in order to keep up and remain current with evolving technology,” he pointed out.
“We can achieve our goal of becoming the most advanced state in Malaysia by 2030 with sufficient human capital especially experts and professionals in the digital field,” he said.
Sarawak, he added, thus has opened its door to digital industry experts from outside to guide Sarawak on its digitalisation journey.
“With strategies and action plans developed with input from experts such as the IBM CSC team, I am confident we would be better positioned to take advantage of the opportunity that the digital era presents,” he elaborated.
The programme brought a team of 15 IBM CSC consultants from 10 countries to deliver pro bono consulting with four agencies; namely the Sarawak Skills Development Centre, Pustaka Negeri Sarawak, Sarawak Biodiversity Centre and Kuching North City Commission (DBKU).
The consultants applied design thinking and problem solving methodologies in their engagement with the agencies to develop strategies for the adoption of digital innovations in education, literacy, biodiversity and public safety.
Manyin urged the four organisations to start implementing the action plans and strategies that have been designed specially for them.
“Take this change and leapfrog into the digital era. Work towards implementing the developed blueprint to head into the digital future with correct steps outlined already for you by the team of experts,” he added.
At the Sarawak Skills Development Centre, the IBM CSC team developed a data-driven strategy to encourage young people in rural Sarawak to consider pursuing Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) as an avenue to obtain skills that will be necessary to participate in Sarawak’s digital economy.
At Pustaka Negeri Sarawak, the team designed an action plan for the state library to use data analytics to better understand and engage with current and potential library users to improve literacy and the use and delivery of the library’s services.
At the Sarawak Biodiversity Centre, the team outlined a roadmap to improve the management of traditional biodiversity knowledge with a view to using analytics to quicken the discovery of medicinal uses and benefits of plants.
At DBKU, the team built an action plan to develop a digital platform that will engage the community to better collaborate and participate in preventing crime.
During the month-long engagement that ended yesterday, the IBM CSC team together with Sarawak Skills Development Centre also conducted a maker workshop for 66 secondary school students, shared advice at the Sarawak Career and Training (SCaT) Fair 2018, taught students how to use technology and co-organised the Women Forum with Deputy State Secretary Datu Dr Sabariah Putit at Tegas Digital Innovation Hub.
IBM Malaysia managing director Chong Chye Neo, IBM Asia Pacific, Greater China and Japan Corporate Citizenship director David Raper and heads of the participating agencies were among those present.