Malaysia wishes to learn from China’s success in implementing 5G

BEIJING: The status of 5G implementation in China, which currently covers more than 90 percent of populated areas, is attracting Malaysia’s interest in learning about the Great Wall country’s success in improving connectivity, especially in rural areas.

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said this is especially at a time when the country is implementing the 5G high-speed Internet dual-network model, to provide quality and inclusive telecommunications services to the people.

That was one of the matters discussed by Fahmi in a bilateral meeting with China’s Minister of Industry and Information Technology Jin Zhuanglong here, which lasted almost 30 minutes yesterday.

“In this meeting, we had the opportunity to discuss a number of things including the implementation status of the 5G network in China and Malaysia, the challenges faced and some improvements or findings that we can learn from each other,” he told Bernama after the meeting.

Fahmi said that one of the problems faced in Malaysia is the installation of fiber as backhaul in remote areas, rural areas, islands, hills.

He said the discussion also touched on direct-to-cell technology involving low earth orbit (LEO) satellites which are seen to be able to help overcome Internet problems in remote areas and areas with no Internet connection.

Based on data from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the current number of 5G base stations in the country exceeded 4.04 million at the end of August.

The figure accounts for 32.1 percent of the total number of mobile base stations across China, with the number of 5G mobile subscribers in the country reaching 966 million.

In Malaysia, so far a total of 7,191 5G sites have been completed across the country with 564 in Sabah and 551 in Sarawak, while the coverage level is now 81.9 percent in populated areas.

Fahmi said that in the meeting, both parties also discussed the challenge of 5G innovation, which saw the vendor as a provider of equipment facilities for 5G in adapting and producing innovation.

“So this is very interesting, I ask the MCMC (Communications and Multimedia Commission) to conduct a more in-depth discussion, including in matters such as submarine cables, which I think is a matter that we need to examine and study,” he said.

Fahmi also hoped that the meeting could strengthen the relationship between the two ministries, thus helping agencies such as MCMC to get useful input in the implementation of the 5G network.

This is the second meeting between the two leaders after meeting in Putrajaya in June last year.

— BERNAMA

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