ARTICLE #5

'S. KOREA CAN TAP MALAYSIA'S ICT'

SEOUL: SOUTH Korean companies should explore business opportunities in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector in Malaysia, which is promoting the sector.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said among the ICT areas that the companies could focus on were the wireless and convergence technology.

Another significant growth area, he said, was in the renewable energy sector, where many global manufacturers had established production facilities in Malaysia to produce components, such as solar cells and modules.

"These are new and emerging industries that require modern infrastructure and support facilities, which are available in Malaysia.

"We invite Korean companies to explore the potential in these areas," he said during a meeting with South Korean captains of industry here yesterday.

Muhyiddin said the government's focus on high value-added and capital-intensive industries would also allow more companies from the republic to invest in Malaysia.

"Given South Korea's strength in these areas, especially in research and development, there is good potential for collaboration in electronics, ICT, biotechnology, agro-based products, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy as well as the development of machinery and engineering equipment."

Since South Korea was the global hub for the electrical and electronics sector, their companies should continue to invest and expand their operations in Malaysia, which was recognised as a leading manufacturing centre for many high value-added, electronic components and equipment, he said.

There are more than 300 South Korean companies in the manufacturing sector in Malaysia with a total investment of more than RM15.5 billion.

Among them are Samsung, Kiswire, Donghwa, SK Telecom and Honam Petrochemicals.

"South Korean companies have not only made substantial investments in Malaysia but have also brought with them suppliers and subcontractors that helped build the local supply chain."

Muhyiddin said the government's decision to liberalise 44 services sub-sectors would allow greater participation of foreign investors in sectors such as health and tourism services.

South Korea was the main investor in the manufacturing sector last year with investments totalling RM5 billion.

He said Malaysia had made significant strides in key global rankings, rising from 26th to 21st among 142 countries in the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 2011. The World Bank's Doing Business Report 2012 had also ranked the country at 18th place.

Muhyiddin earlier made a courtesy call on Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik at his office at the Central Government Complex in Jongrohu.

SOURCE : New Straits Times, by M. Hamzah Jamaludin

ARTICLE #4

National ICT Policy Aims to Double Country's GDP

KARACHI: The Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication has chalked out a plan to double the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita along with private sector by enhancing agricultural yields with advance information and communications technology (ICT) -based systems and applications up to the next decade.

It aimed at generating more than 500,000 jobs in sectors of ICT and IT enabled services through various projects and initiatives throughout the country.

The National ICT Policy 2012 draft made public recently for the suggestions of experts and stakeholders of ICT stated that the cellular phone network will be exploited for education and access to information, localisation of content and broad-based growth of the ICT and ITES sector.

The government and private sector are on the same page to using ICT as a key enabler to drive development across all sectors with focus mainly on education, agriculture, health, governance, entrepreneurship and empowerment.

The policy laid its focus on increasing the enrolment and quality of graduating students from computer science schools in Pakistan. Moreover, the exposure of children will be increased in schools and high schools to applications of computer science at an early age.

In the preparation of this draft policy document, a number of stakeholders have been involved: the Pakistan Software Houses Association for IT and ITES (P@SHA), members of civil society, the technology industry in general, the telecommunication community, the services sector, academia, media and socio-political activists as well as various government entities.

This National ICT Policy document contains actionable milestones and fundable projects, reflecting the point of views of primary stakeholders and the technology industry.

The policy document focuses on driving primary pillars and principles based on the interventions required in each sector affected by technology in Pakistan. In the policy, the focus will be on tapping into economic opportunities within Pakistan through IT as an enabler to drive the local economy.

The policy has been envisioned to improve the quality of life of citizens to the highest attainable levels by ensuring availability of accessible, universal, affordable, modern and high quality IT facilities and services within the country.

Moreover, it aims to accelerate digital literacy and integration in Pakistan, built on facilitating access, awareness, security, trust and fostering research and innovation.

The policy document will be reviewed annually to assess the impact of the document at that stage as well as the effectiveness of the recommended intervention programmes.

The experts and stakeholders submitted their suggestions by July 20, 2012. It will be approved by the ministry and forward to the federal cabinet.

SOURCE: Daily Times

ARTICLE #3

GOVERNMENT APPROVES Rs 388 CRORE PROJECT FOR ICT EDUCATION IN NORTHEAST

NEW DELHI: The government today approved a project to enhance ICT training and education in the north eastern region with a total budget outlay of Rs 388.68 crore.

The Union Cabinet today approved the initiation of the project entitled 'Development of North Eastern Region by enhancing Training and Education Capacity in the Information, Electronics and Communication Technologies (IECT) area', Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal told reporters here.

The project will be implemented by the National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT), which is an autonomous society under the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, he added.

The total budget outlay of the project is Rs 388.68 crore (capital expenditure Rs 266.25 crore and recurring expenditure Rs 122.43 crore), Sibal said.

The Department's contribution in the form of grants-in-aid is Rs 347.88 crore spread over a period of five years, he added.

The project would result in enhanced capacity in terms of training/education in IECT sector for the youth of north eastern region.

The availability of trained professionals in the IECT area is expected to attract entrepreneurs/industrial houses to set up industries in the region, leading to its overall socio-economic development, Sibal said.

About 45,000 students are expected to be enrolled/trained in various long-term/short term courses in five years in the proposed six upgraded centres and 12 extension centres.

The project aims at capacity building in the region that would contribute in attracting IECT industries and generate a pool of jobs leading to overall socio-economic development of the region.

SOURCE: The Economic Times

ARTICLE #2

Japan Revises Green Purchasing Policies for ICT

Japan’s Ministry of the Environment has announced that it is collecting proposals for designated procurement items falling under the law on Promoting Green Purchasing.

This initiative follows a move by the Ministry to partly revise this fiscal year its procurement items and evaluation criteria, defined in “the Basic Policy on Promoting Green Purchasing” based on “the law concerning the promotion of Procurement of Eco-friendly Goods and Services by the State and Other entities” (the law on Promoting Green Purchasing).

For reference to the revision, proposals regarding the procurement items regarding public works projects are to be accepted at the MOE.

“Current concerns for global warming and waste management, among other environmental issues, are rooted in the system of production and consumption, which has promoted mass production, mass consumption, and mass waste,” said the Ministry in a report.

“We must immediately reduce the environmental impact of the goods and services that support our lifestyles and economic activities, and promote a shift in demand toward eco-friendly goods,” it added.

The Ministry hopes that boosting the government’s green procurement initiatives will have a priming effect, extending the commitment to local governments and the private sector in fostering the shift in demand towards eco-friendly products in Japan as a whole.

These are the Ministry’s current Evaluation Criteria for procurement of electronic goods:

They (1) shall meet the following standards: a. For server-type computers, energy consumption efficiency does not exceed the number for standard energy consumption efficiency listed. b. For client-type computers, energy consumption efficiency does not exceed the number for standard energy consumption efficiency listed.

(2) Specified chemical substances (lead, mercury, cadmium, chromium (VI) compound,PBB, PBDE) do not exceed the content standard. Content information of relevant chemicals must be easily available on its website, etc.

(3) Equipment and function are simplified for notebook computers used for ordinary administrative tasks.

The following factors are also to be considered:

(1) Design consideration takes into account product life, efficient use of material, reuse of parts, or recycling of raw material, in compliance with evaluation criteria for Standards for the Promotion of Efficient Use of Material.

(2) The operation time of secondary power (battery) is not longer than necessary for notebook computers used for ordinary administrative tasks.

(3) The product makes the maximum use of recycled material taken from a previously used product.

(4) If plastic components are used for either the body or the parts, the item uses as large amount of recycled plastic as possible, or uses vegetable based plastics whose reductive effect of environmental load has been confirmed.

(5) If magnesium alloy is used for either the body or the parts, the item uses as large amount of recycled magnesium alloy as possible.

(6) Packaging is to be as simple as possible and take into account ease of recycling and reduced environmental impact upon disposal. A system for collection and reuse/recycling of packaging is considered.

(7) Accessories including manuals, recovery CD’s etc. is eliminated as much as possible.

SOURCE: Future Gov, by Johanna Morden

ARTICLE #1

AUSTRALIA SPENDS US$5.3 BILLION ON ICT

The Australian Government remains a major consumer and producer of information technology and communications (ICT) – with annual expenditure reaching AUD$5 billion annually (US$5.3 billion) says a new report.

The report, released by Special Minister of State, Gary Gray, says the Australian Government will continue spending on ICT to streamline service delivery for communities and the industry.

The report draws on data that is collected by the Department of Finance and Deregulation from agencies as part of an annual ICT benchmarking exercise.

The department established a benchmarking framework in 2009, and began its benchmarking exercise officially with the 2008-09 data.

The report provides aggregate figures on ICTexpenditure and use by agencies. It shows that the Australian Government spends about AUD$5 billion (US$5.3 billion) per year, which is about 5 per cent of the Australian ICT market, based on Australian Bureau of Statistics figures.

Key agencies earlier enhanced and extended their ICTcapability, with 30 per cent of spending earmarked for new projects in 2009-10.

But the report notes that ICT investment “increased marginally” during the two years under review in real terms, factoring in inflation and a decrease in overall departmental operating costs

Minister Gary Gray says: “The report gives a very useful insight into the government ICTmarket. The government’s investment in ICT is improving the way it delivers services to the community and industry. While this type of data has not been released previously, the release is consistent with the government’s ongoing commitment to providing better access to government-held information.”

Among high-profile projects, the Australian Government’s single-largest investment is the national broadband (NBN) network. The NBN will support services in the education and health sectors, among other areas, through high-speed, fast-access communications.

Other service delivery projects have included the Department of Human Services “Service Delivery Reform.” This offering features more than one-stop-shops, self-service options and stepped-up support for citizens.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has rolled out its “Passport Redevelopment Program.” This passport issuing system improves client services through the upgrade of an online passport application system.

Data for this week’s report was sourced from agencies that are subject to a Financial Management and Accountability Act (1997). Annual reviews are carried out by the Department of Finance and Deregulation.

These ICT reviews draw on recommendations made in 2008 that agencies consider a “whole-of-government” approach to ICT procurement, while aligning technology spend with improved service delivery.

SOURCE: Future Gov, by Shahida Sweeney

ARTICLE #5

Malaysia's ICT Job Market Looks Bright for 2012

A new report on Malaysia's information and computer technology industry (ICT) is forecasting 12 percent growth in the sector in 2012. Plus, ICT professionals are benefiting from that growth thanks to higher earnings.

The Association of the Computer and Multimedia Industry Malaysia (PIKOM), in its 2012 Job Market Outlook report, says that ICT workers are earning nine percent more this year. The average pay in the ICT sector is now RM6,800 up from RM6,240 in 2011.

PIKOM's Chairman, Woon Tai Hai, said "the trends indicate a positive feel on the overall job market in the country. Salary growth is moderate in tandem with the economic climate in Malaysia which is still experiencing resilient growth in spite of the conditions in Eurozone."

PIKOM says the nine percent growth in salaries is in line with the stimulus provided by various government economic programmes. The Digital Transformation Programme, the Economic Transformation Programme and Entry Points were cited as the three main drivers of salary growth and strength in the sector.

Growth should be sustained in future as interest grows in online and mobile applications. The continued roll out of high-speed broadband, which is part of the Digital Malaysia Initiative, should also support the sector.

Entry-level salaries, which have remained flat over the last ten years, saw an increase this year and are expected to grow in tandem with management salaries. That's good news in helping companies attract recent graduates and may work towards reducing the talent drain.

According to the report, new entrants to the ICT sector has increased significantly, by 24% last year. The new recruits are making RM2,238, up from RM1,800 in 2010.

Within ICT, the report found it pays to work for a larger company. Professionals working at large corporations tend to make more money -on average of 36.4 percent higher - than companies with fewer than 100 employees.

Another contributing factor to maximizing potential depends on where you work. Salaries in the Klang Valley are higher by nine percent compared with Johor. But, Johor is only marginally higher by 1.7 percent than Penang.

ICT jobs are some of the most highly paid in Malaysia. Only oil and gas industry and telecommunications professionals make more.

SOURCE: The Choice

ARTICLE #4

Huawei Set To Help Enhance Malaysia's ICT Training

CYBERJAYA: Huawei, a global leading ICT solution provider, expects to invest another RM90mil in the next few years to consolidate Malaysia's position as a world-class ICT training hub.

The investment would be mainly for equipment and facilities of new technologies at its Malaysia Global Training Centre (MGTC) located here.

Huawei Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd deputy managing director Foo Fang Yong said ICT sector needed a continuous investment as the sector developed rapidly.

“It is a non-stop developing sector where we see new inventions or improved-version technologies almost on a daily basis.

“We invested RM90mil in 2010 when we started the MGTC and we could expect a similar amount to be invested as we must keep abreast with current technologies,” he said after the launching of the centre by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak yesterday.

The MGTC is Huawei's third in the world and first outside its homebased China.

In conjunction with the launch, Huawei also signed an agreement with 10 local universities that would initiate the setting up of 10 Huawei University Training Labs under MSC Malaysia MyUniAlliance (Huawei) programme in each of the universities.

The initiative is to further cultivate the interest of students in the field of next generation ICT technologies such as cloud Computing and Fixed Broadband.

Huawei senior vice-president Victor Wang said the key objective of the initiatives was to train and develop 10,000 ICT local professionals by 2016.

He sai d the initiatives would be further supported by the introduction of MSC Malaysia-Huawei Scholastic Awards, aimed to help cultivate interest among graduates to acquire the necessary skills to enter the ICT sector.

Last year, Huawei which has a work force of 150,000 people worldwide earned US$35bil. Its clientele includes 45 of the world's top 50 telecommunication operators.

SOURCE: The Star Online, by Zuhrin Azam Ahmad

ARTICLE #3

Malaysia slips down ICT competitiveness ranking

KUALA LUMPUR, April 13 — Malaysia slid from 27th to 28th in the 2010-2011 Global Information Technology report released yesterday after it was bumped down by Qatar which jumped 5 spots from 30th to 25th.

Malaysia’s placing this year is equal to its ranking in 2008-2009 and worse than the 26th ranking achieved in 2006-2007 and 2007-2008.

Sweden and Singapore retained their first and second placing respectively atop the rankings with Finland, Switzerland and the United States rounding out the top 5.

The Global Information Technology report (http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GITR_Report_2011.pdf) is an annual publication prepared by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and INSEAD which assesses the impact of ICT on the development and competitiveness of 138 economies worldwide.

The WEF said that this year’s report confirmed the leadership of the Nordic countries and the Asian Tiger economies in adopting and implementing ICT advances for increased growth and development.

It noted that Sweden, Denmark (7th) and Norway (9th) are all are in the top 10, except for Iceland, which is ranked 16th.

Singapore meanwhile led the Asian Tiger economies with Taiwan and Korea improving five places to 6th and 10th respectively, and Hong Kong SAR following closely at 12th.

A look at the sub-rankings show that Malaysia was helped by government readiness (11th) but hurt by the infrastructure environment (51st) and individual usage (45th).

It was also ranked 42nd for international internet bandwidth and 59th in terms of broadband subscribers.

The ICT rankings come after Malaysia dropped two spots in the WEF competitiveness index last year, coming in 26th out of 132 countries and marking the second year in a row Malaysia has dropped in the rankings after falling from 21st to 24th spot in 2009.

The WEF rankings in coming years however are expected to show how effective are the Najib administration reforms such as the New Economic Model, the Government Transformation Programme and the Economic Transformation Programme, all of which were launched between January and December last year.

SOURCE: The Malaysian Insider, by Lee Wei Lian

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ARTICLE #2

Malaysian ICT firms net RM61.2m sales

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian ICT companies recorded RM61.2 million potential sales at the Specialised Marketing Mission on ICT Related Services to Jakarta last week.

Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) said Malaysian participants received encouraging response during the mission.

"The RM61.2 million generated clearly showed Malaysian software and ICT- related services are of good quality and compatible for international requirements.

"One of the participants had signed a memorandum of understanding with two Indonesian companies for commercialisation and distribution of Math Quest games applications and components, including comic strips, mini-games installation, animation and bedtime stories in the South East Asia region.

"The collaboration is expected to generate over RM1.5 million revenue a year," the trade and investment promotion agency said in a statement.

Thirty-five senior officials from 18 companies and organizations were in the five-day mission from April 23. --BERNAMA

SOURCE: NEW STRAITS TIMES

ARTICLE #1

'Women not left from ICT mainstream'

KOTA KINABALU: About 48 per cent of Internet users in the country are women, which shows that they are not left out from the information and communication technology (ICT) mainstream, said Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Dr Yee Moh Chai.

He said the statistics showed that opportunities in the ICT sector were not only limited to the men "because women too could raise their socio-economic standard with the Internet access provided whether in the urban or rural areas".

"The women are as capable as the men in applying the facilities created through the 'online' business at home," he said.

Dr Yee, who is also the State Minister of Resource and Information Technology Development, said this in his speech at the dinner in conjunction with the World Telecommunications and Informed Society Day 2012 organised by the Malaysian Communicatons and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), here last night.

He called on everyone to assist the MCMC in efforts to reduce the digital gap and raise the use of broadband in the state with the various initiatives including the widening of the broadband coverage being implemented currently. -- BERNAMA

SOURCE: NEW STRAITS TIMES