DNB-Ericsson’s Sarawak 5G education showcase featured at Mobile World Congress 2023 in Barcelona

A technology showcase demonstrating how Sarawak can benefit from the availability of 5G is currently on show at the largest and most influential global connectivity event, Mobile World Congress Barcelona 2023.

During his visit to the Ericsson booth, Sarawak’s Minister of Utility and Telecommunication Datuk Julaihi Narawi was able to see how the success in Sarawak has now become part of a global showcase of 5G use cases.

While there, he could also see and learn more about all the advanced technology solutions being deployed in Digital Nasional Berhad’s 5G network by Ericsson. The Minister was also briefed on how 5G can play a role in the development of Sarawak and digitalization of the economy.

Organized by Ericsson and DNB, the recent Sarawak showcase (18 February) featured the successful delivery of a lecture by senior lecturer Dr. Syafiqah Saidin who was in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) in Kuala Lumpur to a group of students in Curtin University located about 1,400km away in Miri.

Although Dr. Syafiqah was inside the UTM-Ericsson IC5G (Innovation Centre for 5G) both the lecturer and students interacted with each other as if in the same physical environment, with no noticeable delay, using AR/VR headsets to experience a high quality, real-time and interactive lecture in a custom-built Metaverse.

The showcase was made possible by utilising the ultrafast, secure, and reliable connectivity supported by Ericsson’s 5G Standalone network, utilising Carrier Aggregation and Network Slicing technologies.

Head of Ericsson Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, David Hägerbro said having the Sarawak showcase featured at MWC demonstrates how 5G can enable digital transformation across all industries and also bridge the digital divide. It is a great showcase for the benefit of Malaysia as well as the rest of the world as it demonstrates the value of 5G in a real-world education scenario.

“The world class 5G network Ericsson is delivering for DNB opens tremendous possibilities for Sarawak and the rest of Malaysia. 5G will enable connectivity for schools, hospitals and businesses located in historically underserved areas, where it can transform education, healthcare and local economies. It will bridge the digital divide while accelerating Malaysia’s digital transformation and ability to leapfrog ahead in the region,” said Hägerbro.

The Sarawak education showcase is on show at MWC from 27 February to 2 March, 2023 in the Ericsson Hall.