Malaysia Sets the Internet Rolling.

In Malaysia, people do not go to the Internet, the Internet goes to them. The pilot project is an Internet-on-wheels called the Mobile Internet Unit (MIU), a cybercoach that goes around the non-mainstream schools in the country to conduct basic literacy programmes. These schools are mostly rural schools that lack both access to information and the opportunity to acquire ICT skills. Most children are fascinated by "e-learning in a bus". For many, it is the first time they touch a computer. Aside from allaying the children's fear of computers and raising their awareness of ICT, MIU staff also collects data and tries to assess the impact of ICT on the teaching and learning processes. The pilot project that started in August 1999 was developed by the AsiaPacific Development Information Programme (APDIP), an initiative of the United Nations Development Programme.

APDIP assists Governments in 42 countries in using ICT to further social and economic development. Malaysia has an ambitious plan: by the year 2020, the East Asian country wants to turn into a fully developed industrial nation with a "knowledge society". With this vision in mind, the National Information Technology Council was established in 1994, as a think-tank to advise the Government on matters pertaining to the development of ICT.

The main challenge in Malaysia and in other developing countries is to create awareness about how these tools can assist economic and social development with Governments and citizens working alike in activities ranging from policy-making to infrastructure and training, and from hosting services to the implementation of networks and information systems.