GEORGE TOWN, July 6 — China’s leading technology company Huawei is expected to visit the Penang Digital Library (PDL) to look into possible areas of investment in the field of technology, said Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.
Lim said PDL is a unique success story in that it is the only digital library in the country without a hardcopy book and is operational round the clock.
According to Lim, during his recent visit to the Huawei headquarters in Shenzhen he had invited the company to visit digital libraries in Malaysia to see how it could help enhance their technological systems.
“While attending a briefing by Huawei in China, I also invited them to come and see for themselves how they could support (us), that is by providing augmentation in terms of 5G technological elements,” he told reporters here today.
Lim said PDL was now offering internet at 4G speed and he hoped that with the support of Huawei the system could be improved.
“They may come in two or three weeks’ time to have a closer look at PDL,” he said.
If Huawei agreed to help, this could become a pilot project for the adoption of 5G internet at digital libraries, he said.
Earlier, Lim, who is also Bagan Member of Parliament, announced the success of PDL and Tan Bee Eu, the principal project architect, in winning a gold medal awarded by the Malaysian Institute of Architects.
He said the award was a recognition for the architect of the PDL building, which has been developed by the state government through a public-private sector joint initiative the past three years.
“This award clearly shows that the PDL project has gained attention not only in Penang but also outside of the state. We plan to extend this PDL construction model to Kedah with the cooperation of the same architect,” he said.
In a report last month, Lim announced that the government through the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority (NCIA) had approved a RM15 million allocation for building a digital library in Alor Setar, Kedah. — Bernama
