(From second left) Zaid, Penguang, Rewi and others posing for photographs after the product briefing.

KUCHING: Sacofa Sdn Bhd, Sarawak’s leading telecommunications infrastructure company, is taking proactive measures to ensure its fibre rollout plans can be achieved with the support of all housing and real-estate developers in the state.

This follows the recent launch of Sacofa Open Fibre Infra Access (Sofia) by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg, which is aimed at maximising the coverage of high-speed broadband throughout Sarawak in line with the chief minister’s vision of achieving high economic growth through Digital Economy.

The company held a product briefing and luncheon session at Hilton Hotel Kuching yesterday to promote the concept of incorporating fibre-optic broadband connections to premises as a vital component of comprehensive utilities for modern residential and commercial buildings.

Sacofa managing director Zaid Zaini, said: “We are here today to educate the stakeholders who all have a big role to play in connecting Sarawak. Sacofa as the infrastructure provider, along with property developers and service providers need to jointly strategise and cooperate to ensure homes, apartments and offices are constructed with Digital Economy in mind.

“Sofia is Sarawak’s own FTTX solution. Sofia will play a critical role in achieving the chief minister’s Digital Economy vision by delivering developers and homeowners choice and value in Internet connectivity.

“Implementation of broadband connections along with other utilities to premises will bring a higher broadband penetration rate in residential and commercial developments, making it a win-win proposition for developers and property buyers alike.

“I would like to thank our partners Celcom who is with us today in partnering Sacofa and supporting Sofia. Together, we have successfully enabled High-Speed Internet service at Eco Park, Samalaju. We look forward to connecting many more locations throughout the state and encourage other service providers to join us in this journey.

“Sofia has allowed Celcom to provide FTTX service of up to 100Mbps in only its second market in Malaysia, the first being in Sabah. This demonstrates how property developers, infrastructure and service providers need to work together to better connect Sarawak,” he said at the event which was officiated at by Assistant Minister of Local Government Datu Dr Penguang Manggil.

Sofia is essentially a turnkey solution which allows existing service providers to offer broadband services in Sarawak to end-users. It is anticipated to attract reputable international players and bring healthy competition which will bring more affordable and competitive prices to Sarawak in the future.

Apart from the newly-launched Sofia, Sacofa’s range of products and services includes various Tower Services, Bandwidth Services, Direct Internet Access (DIA), Dedicated Leased Line, and IT-Managed Services.

The event was attended by deputy president of Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers’ Association (Sheda) Rewi Hamid Bugo and representatives from more than 70 companies based in Kuching. More similar product showcases are planned for the rest of Sarawak this year.