Singapore - About 8 000 low-income families in Singapore will be offered high-speed internet access at subsidised rates as part of a new government scheme, local media reported
The 10-million-Singapore-dollar Digital Inclusion Fund will give the families a fibre-optic broadband connection at speeds of 100Mbps for six Singapore dollars per month, several times below the market price.
The scheme would last for four years.
“There is a need to raise the level of adoption of infocomm, especially among the low-income households,” local newspaper TODAY quoted Minister for Communications and Information Yaacob Ibrahim as saying.
“This will ensure they can benefit and enjoy the improvements and services brought about by new technology,” he said.
Some low-income households will also be able to receive a basic computing device.
Singapore is aiming to roll out high-speed broadband across the city-state to “reinforce the status of Singapore as an infocomm hub,” according to the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) of Singapore.
A survey by the IDA last year showed 13 percent of resident households do not have internet access, TODAY reported. - Sapa-dpa