Engaging the people to transform Mukah into a ‘Smart City’ through SCORE
MUKAH: Feedback from the local community will be crucial to ensure the success of Mukah town’s transformation into a ‘Smart City’ by the year 2030, through the implementation of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE).
According to Regional Corridor Development Authority (RECODA) Chief Executive Officer Tan Sri Datuk Amar Wilson Baya Dandot, engaging the local stakeholders in discussing important aspects of a truly ‘smart’ city will also help the relevant implementing agencies to develop new creative and innovative services to improve the standard of living of the people here.
“The government has already provided the building blocks to create a smart city here but for the vision to materialise the people must also embrace ICT (information and communication technology) and also means providing the Internet connectivity that will allow people to access services essential for any smart city.
“However, it is important for us to get feedback from the ground and hear the opinions of the people on this matter,” said Tan Sri Datuk Amar Wilson, in a press statement issued in conjunction with RECODA’s town hall session to discuss the way forward for Mukah Smart City at RECODA’s office here, yesterday.
More than 60 participants attended the town hall event, including local community leaders, representatives from Federal and State Government agencies, and the local private sector.
The RECODA CEO pointed out that the lessons learned from Mukah’s transformation will be invaluable sources of information for other towns located within and beyond the borders of SCORE, as they journey towards becoming smart cities, as well.
As one of the five Growth Nodes of SCORE, Mukah’s aspirations of becoming a smart city is boosted by the presence of educational institutions such as the Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Mukah campus, Politeknik Mukah and Maktab Rendah Sains MARA (MRSM), as well as Kolej Laila Taib and a University Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) campus to be constructed soon.
Apart from that, plans to build a Mukah Science Park has been approved and when completed will enhance Mukah’s reputation as a centre for research and development within SCORE.
Construction of the new airport in Mukah will also greatly improve connectivity for the town and is expected to spur even greater development for the division.
Meanwhile, the two-day town hall event today was organised by RECODA, which is the main government agency entrusted with the responsibility of transforming the central region of Sarawak through SCORE.
Among the top priorities for RECODA is to coordinate, liaise, monitor, facilitate or oversee the implementation or execution of Federal-funded infrastructure projects approved by the State Planning Authority or any other government agency within the growth nodes of SCORE.
The roles of RECODA are defined by the Regional Corridors Development Authorities Ordinance, 2006 that was passed by the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly on 11 December 2006.