Putussibau, Kapuas Hulu (ANTARA) – Residents of Puring Kencana sub-district on the Indonesia-Malaysia border in Kapuas Hulu, West Kalimantan Province, have said they are facing problems carrying out online work and activities due to Internet connectivity issues.
Internet connectivity in the area around Antu river has become poor, severely limiting services, but technicians have not been able to visit the location amid public activity restrictions (PPKM), they said.
Some youngsters have even taken to climbing the hill in the area to access a 4G network, Yovita, a young resident, told ANTARA here Monday.
“It is really difficult for us to get the telecommunication network. If we have to conduct a virtual meeting via Zoom, we have to search for a higher place and head towards the Malaysian forest area since the 4G signal only appears there,” Yovita said. The route the residents have to take to access 4G networks is also not easy, she added. The roads become slippery when it rains, causing accidents, she explained.
“The internet and telecommunication network becomes our main need in the border area. Moreover, almost all of our work is done online or virtually,” Yovita stressed.
She expressed the hope that the government and the regional administration would consider their plight and build a telecommunication tower in the area to boost connectivity.
“Malaysia has a better telecommunication network. We expect that the Indonesian government pays attention to the difficulties of border communities, especially those in remote areas like Puring Kencana sub-district,” she remarked.
Source: Antara News