PNG and Malaysia agree to re-establish joint commission on ICT
Minister for Information and Communications Technology, Timothy Masiu, and his Malaysian counterpart, Fahmil Fadzil, have agreed to explore the re-establishment of a Joint Commission on ICT between the two countries.
In a bilateral meeting held between the two ministers on Monday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the pair discussed the growing importance of ICT and digital transformation in transforming how the two nations do business.
“I had a bilateral meeting with my Malaysian counterpart yesterday [Monday, 02/09/24] where we discussed the growing importance of ICT and digital transformation in transforming how we do business in our respective countries,” Minister Masiu said.
The Minister said PNG’s own ‘digital transformation journey’ under the Marape-Rosso Government through his Ministry has seen the setting the appropriate policies in place since 2020, soon after he took office in 2019.T
Minister Masiu said these policy interventions included the following:
❖ Digital Transformation Policy 2020
❖ National Cyber Security Policy 2021
❖ Digital Government Act 2022
❖ Digital Government Plan 2023 – 2027
Minister Masiu said PNG has also taken a lead role in having digital transformation attaining a more prominent space in the Pacific region through the establishment of the Pacific ICT Ministers Dialogue.
“The Lagatoi Declaration was agreed to in 2023 in Port Moresby after the inaugural Pacific ICT Ministers’ Dialogue, and just last week, the Pacific Island Leaders (PIF) formally adopted ICT into the PIF architecture.
“This is a long-overdue but welcome development for the ICT sector and augurs very well for the ICT sector overall,” the Minister said.
On a more bilateral level, Minister Masiu said he discussed the reactivation of the Joint Commission on ICT [JC-ICT] under which ICT and media issues can be further discussed and progressed between PNG and Malaysia.
He said the through this JC-ICT, his Department of ICT led the PNG side, which also included NBC, NICTA, Office of the State Solicitor, Office of Civil Registry and Telikom PNG.
Their Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit [MAMPU] and their ICT regulator, MCMC led the Malaysian side.
“With ICT, digital transformation and media taking its rightful place in how governments and citizens now conduct business, it is quite timely to revisit and revive this JC-ICT partnership.
“Minister Fadzil and I have agreed for senior officials to meet immediately, most likely in Port Moresby and propose a way forward on this important bilateral consideration,” Minister Masiu said.