Penang has made the installation of fibre optic cable mandatory for all new housing schemes and buildings in a move to accelerate the development of its telecommunications infrastructure.

State Transport and Infrastructure Committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said Penang has enforced fibre optic installation as a basic utility on par with water and electricity supply.

“Penang is the first state in Malaysia to do so. We are now in the process of replacing outdated copper cables and are expecting to complete this process by the end of next year.

“Fibre is to pave the way for faster internet. So, fibre is our focus. We want to fiberised as soon as possible,” Zairil told Buletin Mutiara in an interview recently.

Zairil said it is compulsory for developers of new housing development or buildings to instal fibre optic when seeking planning permission from the local council just like the need to provide water and electricity supply, without which the developers could not obtain the Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) for their finished project.

He said the fibre optic installation, however, is not compulsory if you build a single house.

For old housing schemes, Zairil said the state has allowed telecommunication companies to lay fibre optic cables in existing ‘longkang’ (drains) to minimise cost.

The fiberasation process is part of the Penang Connectivity Master Plan (PCMP) which the state government has introduced in 2019 to develop its telecommunications infrastructure as well as to realise its aim of a gigabit city.

According to Zairil, the decision by the Penang government to make fibre optic installation mandatory has received recognition and praise from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah through a media statement late last year.

“This Covid-19 situation has shown us how important it is to have a stable and fast internet as people have to work from home and students have to embark on online learning during the lockdown. Now, we begin to appreciate and value the importance of a good telecommunications infrastructure,” said Zairil.

He said the PCMP is in line with the Penang2030 vision of ‘A Family-Focused Green and Smart State that Inspires the Nation’ that Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow had launched in August 2018.

He added that on May 11, 2019, Chow had met the chiefs of seven major telcos and the MCMC in their first meeting to discuss the state’s desire to enhance its telecommunications infrastructure.

A special task force was formed with Chow as the chairman to coordinate, plan and implement all matters related to telecommunications in the state with the tagline, ‘Facilitated by the State, Guided by MCMC and Delivered by Telcos’.

“To date, the implementation of the PCMP is 48 percent complete, while another 20 percent are in progress and the remaining 32 percent will be implemented according to the set time period.

“As of the first quarter of 2021, Penang has achieved 99.68 percent of 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) network in populated areas compared to the national rate of 93.77 percent.

“The target is to have only 4G by the end of next year, and get ready for 5G. 5G requires fibre; no fibre, no 5G. So, whatever it is, what we prepare for 5G today will help us to be 5G ready,” Zairil explained.

Source: Buletin Mutiara