Budget 2013: More Initiatives To Spur Digital Services

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Budget 2013 MalaysiaThe government needs to take more initiatives in Budget 2013 to spur digital services, said Celcom Axiata Bhd CEO Datuk Seri Shazalli Ramly.

Shazalli said they could be in the form of tax incentives, rebates or any other areas to allow consumers to aggressively participate in the digital era and enhance the possibility of a wider use of digital services across all sectors. 

“We need to champion the explosion of digital services within the country to allow more efficient and effective delivery across all sectors in Malaysia,” he told reporters after the launch of Merchantrade Sdn Bhd’s DOOWIT Mobile Remittance Service here today.

He said digital services such as online shops offered huge potentials to the economy as they were easier, effective, cheaper and provided more benefits to the rakyat.


Shazalli said it was time for the government to provide the catalyst that would work aggressively in setting the foundation of the digital services and developed them to ensure the well-being of the country’s future.

“That (digital services) is one critical area if you are looking at investing beyond what is ordinary today. That is one area that I think we should be considering,” he said.

He said the intention to allow the explosion of digital services was to encourage the benefits to be delivered to the rakyat.

Shazalli said most of the country’s population has the capabilities and abilities to do online activities while the younger generation or the millennia generation were more attuned to the infrastructure than the older one.

He said even in the rural areas, there were community broadband centres that could be used by the rakyat to undertake online activities or even work.

“If we take the initiative to build the infrastructure for digital network, we will move our economy to digital economy as touted over the years but first, we have to find the catalyst,” he said. – Bernama

Source: TheSunDaily