Connectivity for All — But Are We All Connected Yet?

KOPITALK WITH MHO

Connectivity for All — But Are We All Connected Yet?

MTIC 2030 is Brunei’s most ambitious blueprint yet for transport and digital transformation. Projects are moving. Systems are going live. But the real question is whether ordinary Bruneians are beginning to feel the difference — and whether those entrusted with delivery are asking the right questions.

 

 

Let me take you back to Seria in the 1960s and 70s.

My late father, Haji Malai Othman, was the Postmaster at the Seria Post Office. As a boy, I used to spend time around his office during school holidays — not because I had to, but because it was simply a wonderful place to be. There was a rhythm to that post office, a sense of purpose you could feel the moment you walked through the door.

The festive seasons were the best. During Ramadan, in the weeks building up to Hari Raya, and again towards the end of the year at Christmas, the post office would be bursting with mail, cards and parcels addressed to destinations near and far, waiting to be sorted, stamped and dispatched. My father’s staff would be working flat out, and young me would happily join in, sorting letters with the kind of enthusiasm only a schoolboy on holiday could muster. I will be honest — it was not purely the spirit of service that drove me. I was also quietly hoping for some duit raya from the kindly staff, and perhaps a little something at Christmas too. But it did not feel like work. It felt like an adventure.

The driver of the mail delivery van was not just a post office employee — he also doubled as our family driver. On slow days, he would take us on the Seria-to-Bandar run, back and forth, simply for the fun of it. A road trip with no real destination, in a van that smelled of ink and brown paper. Those were, as they say, the good old days.

I share this not merely out of nostalgia, but because the Seria post office represented something larger: a government service that showed up day after day to connect people. That old chapter has now entered a new era.

Since 1 January 2026, Brunei’s postal services have no longer been run by a government department. They now come under PosBru Sdn Bhd, a fully corporatised entity, wholly owned by Darussalam Assets and regulated by AITI. The stamp, the counter, the registered parcel — all of it now sits within a corporate structure expected to be competitive, customer-centric and financially sustainable.

This is no small shift. For those who have watched Brunei’s public sector move, however gradually, towards reform over the years, the corporatisation of the Postal Services Department is one of the clearest signs yet of a more operational, performance-driven approach to public service delivery.

And it is only one part of a much larger story.

 

The Plan Behind the Plans

On 29 January 2026, the Ministry of Transport and Infocommunications officially launched its Strategic Plan 2026–2030, better known as MTIC 2030, during a Muhibah Meeting with Legislative Council members. The minister, Pengiran Dato Seri Setia Shamhary bin Pengiran Dato Paduka Haji Mustapha, presented it as a five-year roadmap anchored in a simple but weighty vision: Connectivity for All.

The phrase sounds straightforward. But inside it sits a substantial agenda: 121 projects and initiatives, 21 measurable targets, and four strategic pillars meant to reshape how Brunei moves people, goods and data — by land, sea, air and fibre optic cable.

MTIC 2030 does not stand alone. It sits beneath the broader Wawasan Brunei 2035 umbrella and draws from the Economic Blueprint, the Manpower Blueprint, the Digital Brunei framework, the Road Safety Action Plan, and the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy. In practical terms, it is where large national aspirations meet annual budgets, implementation schedules and measurable targets.

The minister also appeared careful to position this plan differently from the last one. If the previous strategic plan set the broader direction, MTIC 2030 seems intended to be more grounded, more realistic and more responsive to stakeholder feedback, lessons learned and the concerns raised by Honourable Members in LegCo.

That matters. It suggests an effort to move from broad aspiration to sharper execution.

 

What Is Already Moving

This is where the story becomes more interesting. MTIC 2030 is not simply a document launched with ceremony and then left on a shelf. Several of its key initiatives are already underway.

BruneiID, the national digital identity system, opened for public registration on 3 January 2026. Launched jointly by MTIC and the Ministry of Home Affairs, it allows citizens to verify their identity digitally and access government services through a single mobile application. Among the early services linked to it are PSC Recruitment, the Business Reporting portal, TransportBN, BruHealth, E-Undi and the TD123 call centre app.

Think of BruneiID as the digital key to the government’s front door. For now, it opens only some rooms. The wider ambition is for it eventually to open many more.

DriveBN, the $8.74 million digitalisation initiative for the Land Transport Department, is also underway. The objective is striking: to reduce the department’s internal processes from 104 steps to 33, and over time move the full range of driving and vehicle licensing services online. For anyone who has renewed a road tax or booked a driving test the old way, that figure alone goes some way towards explaining why the system has sometimes felt slower than it should.

Muara Port, meanwhile, is being expanded. The new container terminal, a joint venture between Darussalam Assets and China’s Guangxi Beibu Gulf Port Group, is expected to increase annual capacity from roughly 330,000 to 500,000 TEUs when completed in mid-2027. A 3.62-hectare Port Trade Zone is also being developed alongside it.

For those less familiar with port economics, this matters because more capacity can mean more ships, more cargo, more trade, more supporting services and, potentially, more jobs. It is part of Brunei’s effort to strengthen its position in regional maritime logistics.

The Maritime Single Window has also been launched. This is a unified digital platform linking port authorities, customs, immigration, police and the health department within one system. Phase two is already underway, expanding into smart port operations, seafarer IDs, financial transactions and HR functions. The target is fuller automation of maritime logistics and administration by 2030.

The ship-to-ship transfer and lay-up area, which can generate supporting services such as bunkering and offshore support, was also targeted for operational status by the first quarter of 2026.

These are not merely future promises. They are among the initiatives already in motion.

 

The Framework Driving It All

To understand where this is heading, it helps to understand the ministry’s internal architecture for the plan. MTIC 2030 is built around what it calls a 4-4-4 Framework.

There are Four High Priority Enablers: people and infrastructure; policy and regulations; emerging technologies and data; and meaningful partnerships.

There are Four Strategic Pillars: driving digitalisation and innovation; complying with safety and security standards; striving for performance excellence; and advancing sustainable growth and resilient development.

And there are Four Strategic Goals: a Connected and Future-Ready Government; a Connected and Inclusive Society; Connected and Sustainable Businesses; and a Connected and Trusted Ecosystem.

At the centre of this sits a set of values the ministry refers to as MTI³C — Maqasid Syari’ah, Teamwork, Integrity, Inclusivity, Innovation and Collaboration.

The inclusion of Maqasid Syari’ah in a transport and technology plan is notable. At least in principle, it suggests that policy choices are expected to be weighed not only against KPIs and timelines, but also against broader questions of public good, justice and human welfare. That is an ambitious standard to invoke. It also widens the meaning of accountability.

 

The Numbers Worth Watching

Among the 21 strategic targets in MTIC 2030, several deserve close public attention.

One is the target of 80 per cent digitalisation of government services by 2030. If the current baseline is still well below that level, then this is a stretch target — but a meaningful one. Every percentage point of digitalisation should, in principle, mean fewer queues, fewer forms and fewer trips to the counter.

Another is the target of 75 per cent of individuals having at least basic digital skills by 2030. In quiet ways, that target also acknowledges that a substantial part of the population is not yet digitally equipped. The proposed National Digital Literacy Framework and the Nationwide Coding with Smart Devices for Schools programme are meant to help close that gap. Their follow-through will matter.

The target of 99.5 per cent internet reliability by 2030 is equally important. Internet reliability is not an abstract benchmark. It affects remote work, e-commerce, telemedicine, education and the daily functioning of modern life.

Then there are the growth targets: 9 per cent average growth for the ICT sector and 20 per cent growth in the transport sector by 2030. Those are ambitious. If the ICT sector is currently growing at around 3.9 per cent annually, then reaching that higher target will require a stronger lift in private investment, digital enterprise development and talent formation.

And then there is the target of zero major transport accidents by 2030. That is not just an economic metric. It is a human one.

 

The Challenges No Plan Can Paper Over

For all its momentum, MTIC 2030 will still have to contend with structural headwinds no document can resolve on its own.

The talent gap is real. The plan targets 1,800 new jobs in transport and infocommunications by 2030. Spread across five years, that figure also hints at how limited the specialised talent pipeline may still be. The Digital Academy, National Digital Manpower Masterplan, TechInspire, TechXPLORE and PENJANA 2.0 are all intended to strengthen that pipeline. The question is whether they will be funded, scaled and sustained with enough urgency.

Digital inclusion is not only about network coverage. It is also about confidence, affordability and actual use. Expanding last-mile connectivity into rural areas is necessary, but it is not enough. Reaching the elderly, the digitally hesitant, and households with limited device access will require more than cables and coverage maps. It will require patient human support. The Universal Service Provision Fund, meant to subsidise services and devices for underserved groups, could be an important instrument. But, as with all such mechanisms, implementation will matter.

The R&D gap is also significant. Brunei currently spends 0.30 per cent of GDP on research and development, with a target of 0.5 per cent by 2030. Even that target remains modest when set against countries that invest far more heavily in innovation ecosystems. Without stronger investment in knowledge creation and applied innovation, the ambition to build a data economy and an AI-enabled future may struggle to deepen.

Cybersecurity remains another live challenge. The plan refers to a Government Cyber Security Risk Index benchmark, full implementation of the Personal Data Protection Order 2025, and stronger incident-reporting protocols. Those are important building blocks. But cyber resilience is not a one-off milestone. It is a continuing discipline.

Then there is the question of greenhouse gas emissions. The plan commits to reducing emissions in the transport sector by 2030, but the publicly stated target does not appear to specify by how much. For a country that has committed to CORSIA and is developing a Green Port Policy, that missing figure is a gap worth clarifying. It is the kind of detail policymakers, legislators and civil society may reasonably want to see filled in.

 

The Bigger Picture: Why This Matters for Brunei

At the opening of the 21st LegCo session, His Majesty made clear that Brunei’s economy remains heavily reliant on oil and gas. Transformation is therefore not optional.

MTIC 2030 can be read as part of the government’s operational answer to that reality. Transport and infocommunications are not side sectors. They are the arteries and nervous system of a modern economy. Port efficiency affects trade competitiveness. Internet reliability affects whether businesses can function digitally. Digital identity affects whether citizens can access services from home or still have to take a number and wait.

The Brunei Digital Transformation Plan, which will succeed the Digital Economy Masterplan 2025, is reportedly ready and awaiting launch. The National STI Strategy, being developed with CSPS following a May 2025 agreement, is expected to add another layer of support. Separately, Brunei is also studying the feasibility of joining the Trans-Borneo Railway network, a cross-border connectivity proposition that could, if it advances, reshape Brunei’s regional land transport role.

These are not minor moves. They are among the building blocks of any serious post-oil transition.

 

The Accountability Question

MTIC 2030 includes a monitoring mechanism through quarterly and annual reviews against 21 strategic targets. That is useful. But accountability cannot remain an internal exercise alone.

The plan was presented to Legislative Council members during the Muhibah Session. That is a start. But presentation is not the same as accountability. What Brunei needs — and what the public should reasonably expect — is a culture in which progress reports are shared clearly, shortfalls are explained candidly, and elected or appointed national forums are given the information and room to ask difficult but necessary questions.

 

Are bus connectivity routes increasing? Is BruneiID adoption steadily rising? How many of the 1,800 targeted jobs have actually materialised? Is PosBru outperforming the old system in service delivery, and has the transition been fair to those who moved across?

 

These are not hostile questions. They are the kinds of questions that turn a strategic plan from an official document into a national commitment.

 

In Closing

There is a hadith quoted near the front of the MTIC 2030 document, from Ibn Majah: “Whoever makes it easy for someone in difficulty, Allah will make it easy for him in this World and in the Hereafter.”

 

Its inclusion gives the plan a larger frame. Not merely as a technology agenda. Not merely as an economic strategy. But as an act of service.

 

Making it easier for the citizen to renew a licence. Making it simpler for the small business to report digitally. Making it faster for the ship to clear port. Making it possible for the rural household to access the same services as those in Bandar.

 

Connectivity for All. Those three words carry real weight.

 

MTIC 2030 lays out a serious plan. Projects are moving. Some initiatives are already up and running. The machinery of reform is, at least in part, in motion.

 

Now comes the harder test: whether the gains are felt widely, whether delivery remains steady, and whether those responsible for carrying the plan through remain answerable to the nation they serve.

 

Malai Hassan Othman is a media and communications consultant, political analyst and Chairman of the Advisory Board of the National Development Party (NDP). KopiTalk with MHO is published at kopitalkmho.blogspot.com.