THE Mail-Times has published three stories this week that raise questions over how ready the Wimmera is to take advantage of the digital future.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
First, Horsham Rural City Council has accepted a report (see story – page 3) that outlines that many people are being left behind by the technological revolution.
Old age, physical isolation and financial hardship are leaving Wimmera residents isolated from government services and parts of society in general.
Second, Horsham’s real estate market has outperformed other Victorian regional cities but new residents face difficulty connecting to the internet because the phone system can’t keep up.
If Horsham can’t offer the same internet access as other regional cities, then we will fall behind in fierce competition for new residents keen to make a “tree change”.
Third, Wimmera grain producers are being left out of the next wave of innovation to hit agriculture, where every piece of machinery, weather sensor, drone and CCTV camera on farms will be linked to the internet.
Put simply, without better internet access our farmers will not be able to match the future productivity gains that competitors in Australia and around the world will soon achieve.
If farmers’ profit margins take a big hit, then so to will the rest of the Wimmera.
Member for Mallee Andrew Broad has taken these concerns to the corridors of power.
He has pointed out that farmers have to buy two phones because rival telecommunications companies won’t let all customers access every mobile tower.
Telstra has a fair point that its massive investments in building its mobile phone network is built on marketing the benefits of its coverage to new customers.
However, there are wide areas that are still known as Telstra-only or Optus-only areas, if they get a signal at all.
The federal government would love it if every citizen was able to take care of their government business via the internet.
However, people who need government services the most tend to be elderly, or they have a disability or financial hardship.
It’s clear that a lot more needs to be done to grant the Wimmera place in the digital future and make sure everyone is invited.
Rex Martinich is senior journalist at the Mail-Times.