Malang, E Java (ANTARA News) – All villages in Indonesia are expected to be covered by telecommunications networks and have access to the Internet, a minister said.
Information and Communication Ministers M Nuh said here on Friday that the total number of villages in Indonesia which had not yet been covered by telecommunications networks reached 31 thousand and at the end of 2009 or early in 2010 at the latest, they all were expected to have been covered by the facilities.
“All villages, including the remote ones, will be able to enjoy telecommunication networks, including the Internet early in 2010 at the latest,” the minister said on the sidelines of the inauguration of an Internet access at Brawijaya University`s smart house in Malang.
The minister said that in order to provide telecommunications networks and the Internet, the government had set aside a fund of Rp2 trillion in 2009.
He said that after the villages were covered with telecommunications and Internet networks, the next thing that had to be thought was how to increase villagers` financial reaches because with the Internet facility the people could make economic transactions among themselves.
Besides the connection facilities, the other important thing was that the content of the Internet, particularly those with regard to the e-education and e-health programs.
He said that after telecommunications and the Internet had covered all villages in the country which totaled 72 thousands, the government targeted that each of them would also have a smart house which was equipped with the necessary facilities, including the Internet.
The minister said that the Ministry of Information and a number of state-owned higher institutions such as the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), the University of Indonesia (UI), the Surabaya Institute of Technology (ITS), the University of Airlangga (Unaiar) and the Padjadjaran University (Unpad), were conducting a study and research on the impact of the Internet on the social, economic and cultural life of the people in the rural areas.
Source: ANTARA News
