Many areas in Malaysia remain under-served despite a 600 percent hike in the penetration of cellular telephones since 1998, Dr Lim Keng Yaik said today.

The energy, water and communications minister said although the number of users of cellular services had jumped from 2.1 million to 16.5 million, "there remain significant areas that are still under-served".

To overcome this, he said, a two-tier programme is already underway after it was launched last year designed for staggered provision of full coverage starting with Putrajaya, Cyberjaya, Kuala Lumpur and the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

He said the first phase has achieved 80 percent of its target.

"The second phase (is underway) and will see improved coverage throughout the whole country, especially in all towns, along highways and railways as well as tourist destinations," he said at a conference in Kuala Lumpur.

"To improve efficiency as well as reduce costs, all service providers are required to share infrastructure such as towers, poles and ducts.

"Besides reducing costs, this will also reduce the number of towers that dot the landscape," he added.

Lim was delivering his speech at a ministerial plenary dialogue on 'Perspectives on Policy and Regulatory Issues: The Challenges Ahead' at a conference in Kuala Lumpur.

About 500 senior executives, government officials and policy-makers are attending the three-day Global Public Policy Conference 2005 'Sharing Opportunities in the Network Economy' as a preparatory platform for the World Summit on Information Society.

Among the major issues scheduled for discussion are the digital divide, e-government, outsourcing and telecommunications convergence.

Critical initiative

The senior minister said the implementation of the National Broadband Plan (NBP) is the core support to ensure growth, with the help of libraries and community centres, schools, universities and research institutions, and hospitals and clinics.
"(This) initiative is critical to ensure that broadband infrastructure is commercially adequate to support further rollouts by the private sector," Lim said.

"Apart from benefiting from the secure and improved facilities, the public sector can help by reducing prices to affordable levels."

Lim said the government was considering offering special tax relief similar to that enjoyed by Multimedia Super Corridor-status multinationals and to facilitate access to affordable financing for internet service providers.

He said local telcos were now dictated by economic considerations and global benchmarks and are no longer in the era of government-owned telecommunication companies,

"Telcos are often the barometers of equity markets and are sensitive to analysts' evaluations. For this reason, they tend to maximise returns and feel that social obligation is deemed to have been fulfilled through contributions to the Universal Service Fund (USF)."

The Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 provided for the setting up of the fund in 2002 comprising contributions from all licensees, except broadcasters.

The minister said the USF, currently running 86 projects nationwide, is used to finance telephone and internet access in under-served areas.

Lim also posed to participants the issue of how to propel Malaysia in the delivery of advanced information, communications and multimedia.

The event was hosted by the Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute, the Association of the Computer and Multimedia Industry Malaysia and the Multimedia Development Corporation Sdn Bhd.