The highly anticipated launch was attended by Johnny G. Plate, Indonesia's minister of communication and IT; Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the mayor of Surakarta Municipality; Qatar's Ambassador for the Republic of Indonesia, H. E. Ms. Fawziya Edrees Salman Al-Sulaiti; and Huawei Indonesia CEO, Jacky Chen.
Known locally as Solo, the city is looking to 5G to boost its post-Covid economic recovery through smart city initiatives and enhanced services.
Plate said: "Even though 4G still serves as the backbone of our digital transformation, we hope that the initial commercialisation of 5G can be further our national vision to be a regional digital powerhouse. Together, let’s ensure the presence of 5G service will bring benefits to the nation and have a significant impact on economic recovery.”
The roll out will support smart city initiatives and more efficient processes for city services and local business.
Helping shape its reputation as a smart city, Ooredoo will also establish a smart information hub at Solo's City Hall that connects the city’s command centre to more than 2,700 RT community residents to provide real-time information across the entire city.
Supporting digital education, Indosat Ooredoo will provide content creator training and coaching to 2,000 of Solo’s youth and main youth-leading communities. The company is also providing Augmented Reality (AR) training for 500 young developers in Solo.
Finally, Ooredoo is providing its micro-lending offer UCan to local MSMEs to help fund the growth of their businesses.
The Solo launch will be followed by commercial roll outs in other major cities in Indonesia, including Jakarta, Surabaya, and Makassar.
President director and CEO Indosat Ooredoo, Ahmad Al-Neama, said: “I am deeply humbled and proud to launch Indosat Ooredoo’s first commercial 5G services in Solo and to showcase the transformative power of 5G technology to the youth and business communities in this wonderful city. We believe 5G technology will help accelerate the digital transformation of Indonesian society and stimulate innovation in businesses across all industries.
"Today’s launch marks the beginning of our journey in powering the 5G revolution in Indonesia, helping to move the nation towards a 5G-enabled future. Through our 5G services, we aim to fuel the spirit of #BisaBangkitBersama in Solo and throughout Indonesia, aligned with Indosat Ooredoo’s mission to makes people’s lives better through the power of technology. On this occasion, we would also like to thank the Government of Indonesia for their continued trust and support for the company,” Al-Neama continued.
