JAPAN INTERESTED IN ACTIVELY COOPERATING IN ASEAN ICT MASTERPLAN

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 12 (Bernama) -- Japan has expressed an interest in
actively cooperating in the Asean ICT masterplan to bring significance in terms
of ICT development to the Asean region and the global economy.

The Asean ICT masterplan will be launched this Friday.

Japan's Vice Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and
Communications, Tetsuo Yamakawa said the country would like to cooperate in
different projects by providing the Japanese model to Asean.

Japan is also interested in providing cooperation in terms of infrastructure
development, according to Yamakawa.

"We intend to work together with Asean on the information security framework
which is a critical area and should be done jointly with China and Korea," he
said at a press conference during the 11th Asean Telecommunications and
Information Technology (TELSOM) meeting here Wednesday.

Yamakawa also said, some of the key points in the development of ICT,
is how to improve ICT infrastructure and eliminate the digital divide.

Another important point, he said is the development and usage of ICT.

"In Japan, even though available nationwide, the usage is not fully
utilised. In Asean, the same applies. Even if you have the broadband
infrastructure but no users, you cannot enjoy the benefits," he explained.

Policy and regulatory framework to bring economic transformation, he said,
is also another an important issue that cannot be overlooked.

He highlighted that by holding policy dialogues between Asean and Japan
and training, there is an opportunity to share know-how.

"Asean needs to revamp policies to promote ICT. It is important to foster
cooperation between ICT and other areas," he said.

Yamakawa said there is a need to look at the success stories of the
development of ICT.

"In Japan, what is driving ICT usage, is the education, medicine and
administrative government sectors. It is also important to work on improving
public aweneress," he added.

"In Japan they created a lot of expensive systems but it was not fully
utlised because of the lack of public awareness," he explained.

He said Malaysia with its strong leadership is able to come up with plans to
execute its policies and reach advancement in ICT development.

In broadband infrastructure, he noted, Malaysia has still room for further
development.
-- BERNAMA