Enhancing knowledge on technology among people, the government and industry is essential to make a "Smart Bangladesh", according to experts.
"People, industry and government organisations are still not prepared for 5G with sufficient use cases. So, we need to educate them first," said Shyam Sunder Sikder, chairman of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).
He then said 5G is needed for the automation of healthcare, industries, seaports, education, airports and agriculture as that is how the country will get a smart economy.
Sikder was speaking at a session of the three-day Bangladesh 17th Internet Governance Forum 2022 on "Smart Bangladesh: Opportunity and Challenge of Mobile Telecom Industry" at the Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific.
He went on to say 5G will increase the use of the internet of things (IOT), which will connect devices and people.
"We have allocated 190MZ spectrum to the operators, but they need huge investment to deploy," he said.
Besides, consumers are not concerned about the price of availing 5G or the latest technologies.
"People's main concerns are centring on faster internet speed, quality of services, unlimited data package and carry forward," Sikder said.
"It is true that people are facing such problems. I am also getting complaints from users that they cannot carry forward their data. There is an information gap between customers and the operator," he added.
Sikder then informed that if a customer does purchase a similar package, his unused data will not be carried forward.
"So, mobile network operators should take steps to reduce the gap," he said.
Hans Martin Hoegh Henrichsen, chief corporate affairs officer at Grameenphone, presented a keynote in the session on Smart Bangladesh.
He said high speed internet is a must for building a smart economy.
"A complete portfolio of a smart village/city will require the integration of several services that can help impact different verticals. As such, a flexible, scalable and open platform-based solution will be at the heart of the overall enablement," he added.
Henrichsen emphasised on developing a wide range of IOT solutions.
The government recently introduced its Smart Bangladesh goal that is based on four pillars: smart economy, smart society, smart government and smart citizen.
Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/economy/news/knowledge-tech-must-smart-economy-3167521