New
Wireless horizon
Singapore set to launch one of the boldest ‘wireless’ steps in the world. Gulf News.
Nov 11, 2006

By Dr. Mohammad Al Asoomi
Singapore has decided to become a giant wireless area, which is one of the boldest steps to be taken around the globe.

The move is an attempt to offer a model for the entire world, and to open up horizons for Singaporeans to enter the world of digital information technology through its widest doors.

In 2007, Singapore's four million people will be able to surf the Internet, free of charge, through mega swift communication lines.

All one will need is a laptop, or any other internet connectable device to connect to the internet from any location in Singapore - be it a public garden, a park or any other place in this economically advanced island.

"The aim is for all the people in Singapore to make use of this digital age, with no technology gaps between different society classes.

“We also believe Singapore has completely absorbed the meaning of the increasingly important digital economy for the globe's development future," said Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

The programme will result in economic, social and cultural development.

The cost will not exceed US$65 million, which is an affordable sum, for other countries such as Arab countries to set up similar wireless regions.

The cost of such an ambitious programme seems little in comparison to the benefits gained from a society converted to a digital economy.

Providers

The question is whether telecommunication companies in the Arab countries will allow Internet.

Currently, these services are offered at high rates that may exceed US$100 per month, which makes them inaccessible to almost all social segments.

The exception is in rich Arab countries, where these services are in proportion with the high standards of living.

This orientation may pose a conflict of interests, between the profits of Arab telecommunication companies and the availability of channels to enter the highly-developed digital society.

This will determine the position of every country in the new international labour categorisation, and the extent of economic and social development in that country.

Singapore has solved this problem through the tax system. The programme is financed by government taxes.

Here, we can find conciliatory formulas between Arab telecommunication companies' profits and the general benefit of society, embodied in offering free internet services, and subsequent availability of digital and information technology to all society members.

This will go hand in hand with positive changes in all aspects.

The cost of the project for any Arab country seems reasonable and affordable, including poor Arab countries.

This project can be considered a very important investment, as nothing is more important than education and learning.

The cost of this project may be carried by the private sector in Arab countries, as taxes are extremely low.

The social benefit from this project deserves temporary sacrifices by telecommunication companies, as this part of profits can be compensated easily through diversifying the company's activities.

The world of telecommunications and digital information technology is present in all details of life including production and services, which are transferring societies to the post- industrial era.

And as most Arab societies live in a pre-industrial era, heading towards information technologies will give these societies a chance to catch up with the digital economy bandwagon, which is moving at a great speed.

In my opinion, there are three or four Arab countries, three of which are Gulf countries, nominated to copy the Singaporean experiment in the coming few years.

I will not name these countries, and will leave it to the readers' imagination to guess which of the Arab countries are advanced enough to apply a similar programme.

The writer is a UAE economic expert.