KUCHING, 19 November 2019 - The launching of Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA) Office today in conjunction with SMA Open Day by the Right Honourable Chief Minister of Sarawak signifies the determination of the State Government in ensuring the Sarawak Digital Economy that is spearheaded by SMA is successful. 

The SMA Office Launching by the Chief Minister of Sarawak was held in conjunction with SMA Open Day, a four (4) day program that was held at SMA Creative Heritage Innovation Centre (CHIC), Bangunan Yayasan Sarawak. The SMA Open Day has attracted over 3000 participants and visitors over the course of four days through its various activities such as artisanal market - Pasar Orang Kita (POK!) an, E-Sports Tournament, OKSHE Bakat Kamek, Indie Concert and Bootcamp, a motivational talk by Datuk Aznil Hj Nawawi and Dendang Kenyalang, performed by various local artists. 

The Open Day was held to attract visitors to come and learn more about SMA and its initiatives in developing the Digital Economy in Sarawak. SMA was established with its primary objective to spearhead, oversee and facilitate the development and implementation of the communication, multimedia and the State’s Digital Economy Initiatives. 

According to the Chief Minister, “More and more things are going digital and automated, and this culture will eventually be cultivated and accepted as norms in the next and future generations, not only locally but also globally. Hence, in foreseeing that kind of future digital culture, we have no choice but to quickly learn, adopt and adapt the current and potential digital ways of doing things especially for a competitive Sarawak’s Economy in the global arena and not being backward and left behind.”

During the program, the Chief Minister also announced the launch of the Sarawak Digital Village Ecosystem (SDVE), an inclusive ecosystem to develop Startups across Sarawak, the Startup Registration Portal which is a one stop portal for startups to register themselves with SMA, the Startup Award, which is geared toward recognising promising startups in Sarawak and finally the STEM and Startup Enabler Support, which is an initiative to assist schools and startups to go and attend competition on the international stage. 

The Launching of SMA Office also saw the MoU exchange between SMA and Malaysia Business Network Angel (MBAN) which aims to create a chapter in Sarawak. MBAN focuses on the development of the Investors Network across Malaysia. “The establishment of MBAN Sarawak Chapter will surely intensify the Startup Development in Sarawak. Currently, we are developing a framework for SDVE and one of the main pillars within SDVE is Investors participations. With MBAN Sarawak Chapter, SMA can host various Investors education in all of its Digital Innovation Hub (Kuching, Sarikei, Bintulu and Miri) to further create awareness amongst rich entrepreneurs regarding our talented Startup that has the potential to be invested in.” Said Dr Zaidi Bin Razak, General Manager SMA. 

Apart from the Launching of SMA Office, the Chief Minister also launched the Digital Economy Gallery today, which showcases the various projects and initiatives that SMA is currently spearheading. The Gallery is a one stop centre for Sarawakians, visitors and even tourist to learn more about the Sarawak Digital Economy. Currently, the Gallery houses various Augmented and Virtual Reality exhibitions, information regarding SDVE, a Smart City Model, an automated production line and an indoor Smart Agriculture exhibition. The Gallery will be open to the public starting from next year (2020). 

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