BALI, Oct 20 — Malaysia and Indonesia have agreed to establish inter-agency cooperation at the implementation level to address online child safety issues, with efforts to eventually involve Singapore in the collaboration.
Communications Minister Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil said online safety, particularly involving children, is an important issue requiring the collective attention of countries in the region.
“We are working towards holding a trilateral meeting involving Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore, InsyaAllah (God willing), in December, if schedules permit,” he told Bernama after a bilateral meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Meutya Hafid today.
Fahmi added that although ASEAN countries have different laws and implementation approaches, the initiative by Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore could encourage other countries in the region to participate.
“We not only have aligned policies, but may also have several similar mechanisms, although they may not be exactly the same,” he said.
The minister also welcomed Meutya’s intention to strengthen cooperation between the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and Indonesia’s Communication and Digital Affairs Ministry.
Fahmi noted that the MCMC’s experience in handling public complaints related to social media could also be useful to the Indonesian authorities.
In a related development, Singapore’s Digital Development and Information Minister Josephine Teo said she and Fahmi had exchanged views on developments in their respective telecommunications sectors during an impromptu meeting at the Ngurah Rai International Airport yesterday.
In a post on her official social media account, she said the discussions included quantum-safe communications and online safety for children and young people. Teo also expressed hope of hosting Fahmi in Singapore soon.
She met Fahmi, who had just arrived in Bali, while she waited for her flight back to Singapore after attending Bali Tech Week 2026.
Fahmi is in Bali at the organisers' invitation to deliver a keynote address at Bali Tech Week.
He was accompanied by MCMC Deputy Managing Director (Regulatory) Datuk Mohamed Sulaiman Sultan Suhaibudden and First Secretary (Economics) at the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta Fakhrul Arifin Mohammad Zulkifly.
