Indonesia and Malaysia Step Up Border Spectrum Coordination at 23rd JCC Meeting

Radio signals don't stop at borders, which is why neighbouring countries have to agree on who uses which frequencies where. Indonesia and Malaysia did exactly that at the 23rd meeting of their Joint Committee on Communications (JCC), held in Bali from 15 to 17 September 2026.

What was on the table

Indonesia's delegation was led by Komdigi's Directorate General of Digital Infrastructure, and Malaysia's by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC). According to Komdigi, the agenda covered:

• Coordination of mobile (IMT) bands along the border
• Digital trunked radio in the 380–400 MHz and 410–430 MHz bands
• Management of the 430–440 MHz band
• Frequency registration and notification, and coordination between operators

The mobile and non-broadcasting working group resolved five of its nine agenda items, and the meeting ended with both sides signing the Agreed Minutes. The full minutes haven't been made public.

Why now?

Indonesia issued new 700 MHz and 2.6 GHz licences to mobile operators in August 2026. As those networks roll out, especially near the border on Borneo, the risk of interference goes up. Regular coordination keeps networks on both sides working properly and makes better use of the spectrum.

This builds on a special session in Bandung in April 2026, where the two countries agreed how to handle the 430–440 MHz band at the border and aligned their shared registration database.

Does this affect equipment approvals?

Not directly. This is about how spectrum is shared, not about type approval requirements. But band arrangements do shape which equipment operators deploy, so manufacturers of trunked radio, land-mobile and cellular equipment for the region may want to keep an eye on it.

Selling into either market? We handle both Indonesia SDPPI type approval and Malaysia type approval.

Sources: Komdigi DJID release, 18 September 2026, Komdigi on the April 2026 special JCC, MCMC international spectrum coordination.