LEXINGTON, KY - After being lauded as model for the United States in President Barack Obama's stimulus plan, the head of the program that has made it so 95 percent of Kentuckians can have access to high speed Internet has been invited to advise Malaysian Prime Minister Dato' Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak.
Brian Mefford, chairman and CEO of Connected Nation, which grew out of ConnectKentucky - a program established in 2002 by the non-profit Center for Information Technology Enterprises to give people across the commonwealth the ability to connect to Web on more than just dial-up - was invited by the Malaysian PM to be a part of the Southeast Asian country's 12th International Advisory Panel Meeting.
Along with the likes of Steve Forbes, IBM's chairman and CEO Samuel J. Palmisano, a Microsoft corporate vice president, a Nobel Laureate and others, Mefford will be advising Malaysian leaders in a series of meetings titled 'Innovation Economy: Paving The Path To Prosperity.'
Business Lexington
"Much has been done to transform Malaysia's economy to a knowledge-based economy but they are looking to ensure that all people are able to participate," Mefford told in an email from Putrajaya, the Malaysian administrative capital, just south of Kuala Lumpur. "The key to that is to ensure that all people have access to broadband and computers and that they know how to use broadband enabled technology once it's available. The work of ConnectKentucky and the extension of that success to other states through Connected Nation's inclusion in the federal stimulus is serving as a model for reaching rural areas and other underserved segments in creative ways."
Though areas like Kuala Lumpur are shining examples of a booming 21st Century Asian economy, the nation struggles to connect it outer-reaches to the information infrastructure that has made Southeast Asia a hotbed for commerce.
"There is no connectivity in much of the rural areas, but there are aggressive plans for nationwide wireless broadband over the next two years," Mefford said adding that like in Kentucky many people chose not to access the broadband available to them whether by choice or due to cost. "Connected Nation has developed a model to address that gap through a grassroots approach that makes the technology relevant to people by helping them see how they can use technology to improve the way they live and work."
Mefford said his trip abroad is about more than just advising as the model launched under former Gov. Paul Patton and expanded a few years later by former Gov. Ernie Fletcher may take hold under the umbrella of Connected Nation, which is currently working in more than 20 states thanks to funds from the Gates Foundation and inclusion in the stimulus act.
"There is strong interest in having Connected Nation establish a global center of excellence for digital inclusion in Malaysia. This will coincide perfectly with Malaysia's aggressive plan to accelerate technology opportunities for all people regardless of their location or socioeconomic status which is the core value held by ConnectKentucky and Connected Nation," he said.
The Malaysian meetings began Sunday and ran through Tuesday.