Helping rural S-E Asia to jump on digital bandwagon

SOUTH-EAST Asia produces the vast majority of the world's palm oil, widely used in food and cosmetics, as well as a source of bio-fuel. But just as palm oil benefits economies throughout the region, its cultivation also results in huge amounts of waste and pollution.

Lack of effective waste monitoring plague the biggest producers in the region, and a major reason is due to the cost of technology, with only about a tenth of the plantations linked to the internet and few farmers able to afford the costs of expensive satellite connections.

Some homegrown tech startups are already seeking solutions to these difficult issues. In Singapore for example, one company has found a way to harness TV white space and idle TV spectrum to provide low-cost and long-range transmissions.