COMMENTS: Making use of USP Fund to bridge divide

THE Universal Service Provision (USP) Fund was one of several initiatives taken by the Government a couple of years back to boost telecommunications facilities in the rural areas.

The fund was initially used to provide telephony services in underserved areas. The Government has since expanded its usage to include value-added and broadband Internet access/services.

The USP Fund, administered by Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), pays for capital expenditure and yearly operational expenses incurred on providing services under the plan.

But looking at how things are going, it looks like the target of getting the entire rural areas of Malaysia, or most of it, on the Internet bandwagon would be unfulfilled over the short term.

According to Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Seri Lim Keng Yaik, while the fund has now reached a whopping RM2.6 billion, only about RM150 million has been spent for boosting Internet penetration nationwide.

Apparently, only a few States have applied to make use of the fund since its inception in 2002, while the rest have not.

This seemingly lackadaisical attitude certainly needs to change, if we harbour hope of realising the vision of a knowledge society. This vision will continue to be a distant dream if rural areas remain underserved and digital divide still exists.

Information and communications technology (ICT) has been identified as being a strategic tool for economic development, and thus strong efforts are needed to ensure that all levels of the Malaysian society, regardless of race and religion, have access to these facilities.

While the Government has been proactive in its effort to narrow the digital divide, it needs to ensure that the machineries at all levels of administration, including the State Governments and its agencies, are also equal to the challenge.

Efforts are also needed to identify the States which have not submitted their applications for the USP Fund and the reasons for not doing so.

We also need to ensure that there are no red tapes and bureaucracies whatsoever, when it comes to implementing crucial initiatives such as those designated under the USP Fund.

Failure to do so will be a great injustice to the communities affected, as they will remain underserved for a longer period of time when others have progressed and become a part of the knowledge society.