KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission is drafting additional plans for the second phase of JENDELA, the national digital network plan, as it works to widen high-speed internet coverage in rural areas. Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching told the Dewan Negara that 9.48 million premises had fibre optic access as of 31 July. Internet coverage in populated areas stood at 98.82 per cent, while the median mobile broadband download speed reached 150.10 Mbps.
The fixed and mobile numbers tell different stories. On the fixed side, 9.48 million premises have fibre access, and coverage in populated areas has reached 98.82 per cent. On the mobile side, Digital Nasional Berhad has completed 7,489 transmitter sites, giving 5G coverage to 82.4 per cent of populated areas. The second 5G network built by U Mobile began operations on 14 July with 1,232 sites completed, and 5G subscriptions have passed 28 million, a penetration rate of 82.7 per 100 people.
Fibre points of presence reach rural districts
The government's fibre access point programme, known as PoP, is the part of the plan that reaches beyond towns. A point of presence is a location where a local network connects to a wider fibre backbone, allowing local providers and businesses to buy capacity. As of 12 August, all 677 PoPs in Phase 1 had been completed. In Phase 2, 1,468 of 3,693 PoPs had been finished, providing 163,906 fibre optic ports with speeds of up to 1Gbps.
Meanwhile, 1,468 PoPs out of 3,693 under Phase 2 have been completed nationwide, providing 163,906 fibre optic ports with speeds of up to one gigabit per second (1Gbps).
Fibre ports matter to the cloud and data centre market because they decide where enterprise-grade connectivity can actually be delivered. A district with a completed PoP and spare ports can support a branch office, a small data centre or a local internet provider without waiting for a private build. The 1Gbps ceiling on these ports is modest by data centre standards, but it is enough for most rural businesses and public institutions.
Affordability and the 2030 target
Affordability remains a mixed picture. Malaysia's mobile broadband cost 0.7 per cent of gross national income per capita, well below the United Nations benchmark of 2 per cent. Fixed broadband came in at 2.2 per cent, slightly above that benchmark. The gap reflects the higher cost of laying fibre to individual premises compared with running a mobile network across the same population.
The 13th Malaysia Plan sets a target of 98 per cent 5G coverage in populated and industrial areas, including rural districts, by 2030. Reaching that figure means extending coverage beyond the places where demand alone justifies investment. It also means the remaining gaps will be in the areas with the lowest population density and the weakest commercial case.
- 9.48 million premises with fibre access as of 31 July
- 98.82 per cent internet coverage in populated areas
- 150.10 Mbps median mobile broadband download speed
- 7,489 Digital Nasional Berhad transmitter sites completed
- 82.7 5G subscriptions per 100 people
Community centres and school-centred fibre
The government has also used community internet centres to close the access gap. Under the 1 NADI 1 Community programme, 1,098 of 1,099 centres were fully operational as of 31 July. Only one site, Kampung Gelam in Sabah, remains to be built because its location has changed. NADI centres are the renamed community internet centres that provide public access, training and devices.
For remote areas with no commercial case, the government has taken a different approach. Fibre is laid outward from schools as centre points, covering a radius of 2.5 to 3 kilometres around each school. That method ensures that villages with too few customers to attract a commercial operator still receive a connection, and it is the clearest example of how the second phase will differ from a market-led build.
- All 677 Phase 1 PoPs completed
- 1,468 of 3,693 Phase 2 PoPs completed
- 163,906 fibre optic ports of up to 1Gbps
- 1,098 of 1,099 NADI centres fully operational
Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching said JENDELA has achieved encouraging progress, with 9.48 million premises now having fibre optic access and internet coverage in populated areas reaching 98.82 per cent as of July 31.
What the second phase still has to solve
The remaining work is concentrated in the places that are hardest to serve. The single outstanding NADI centre is in Sabah, and the school-radius approach exists precisely for areas that no commercial operator would build in. Phase 2 of JENDELA is meant to close those gaps rather than add capacity in districts where the market already delivers service.
For Malaysia's cloud and data centre market, rural connectivity is not a separate question. Data centres cluster in Johor, the Klang Valley and a few other hubs, but the customers they serve are spread across the country. Every additional connected district adds demand for cloud services, and every completed PoP gives local businesses a way to reach those services at a usable speed.
The affordability numbers also shape how the market develops. When mobile broadband costs 0.7 per cent of income per capita, consumers can afford data-heavy services, while fixed broadband at 2.2 per cent remains a harder sell for lower-income households. Closing that gap is part of what the second phase of JENDELA is intended to address, and it is the part that most directly affects how quickly cloud adoption spreads beyond the main cities.
Source: Bernama
