Indonesia’s move will make Sabah very attractive to investors
Published on: Thursday, August 22, 2019
By: Ottey Peter
KOTA KINABALU: The Indonesia Government’s decision to relocate its capital to Kalimantan in Borneo will make Sabah immensely attractive to investors seeking to access the potentially rapidly growing economic powerhouse, said Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority (Sedia) Chief Executive Datuk Dr Mohd Yaakub Johari.
Speaking at the Malaysia (Sabah)-Singapore Business Meeting at the Marriott, Monday, he said Sabah is strategically located along major maritime and shipping routes and is also blessed with natural resources such as oil and gas, arable land, among others.
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He said Sabah, in particular through the Sabah Development Corridor programme, welcomes investments in tourism, agriculture, oil palm, oil, gas and energy, manufacturing and logistics, and education.
“The Government is planning to turn Malaysia into an entrepreneurial nation. While encouraging domestic investment, it also welcomes foreign participation in the local economy and continually seeking overseas business partners, especially in identified growth sectors.
“In view of this, Sedia has been active in promoting foreign investment into the State.
“Sabah has much to offer, with opportunities for growth in several sectors, including in agriculture, tourism, manufacturing and logistics,” he said.
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Yaakod said among the measures in place to attract foreign investment is a tax incentive package under the Sabah Development Corridor (SDC) which is meant to enhance the Corridor’s competitiveness in securing investment.
He explained that under the SDC incentive package, Sedia is offering fiscal incentives based on the key focus areas within designated economic areas such as full tax exemption on statutory income for up to 10 years, investment tax allowance of 100 per cent on qualifying capital expenditure for five years and full exemption on import duty and sales tax exemption, subject to current policy.
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He said Sedia is also looking into establishing a Free Zone in KKIP to leverage its geographical advantage, being centrally located within the BIMP-EAGA sub-regional growth area.
Going forward, he said Sedia has been according greater emphasis on improving the State’s economic competitiveness by enhancing the State’s global connectivity to ensure seamless movement of people, goods and services.
“Efforts are directed especially towards enhancing the efficiency of the logistics sector by improving the relevant infrastructure and the four integration of land, sea, and air services.
“In the long run, this will help in reducing the cost of living and doing business, thereby enhancing the State’s competitiveness.
“A key measure towards this direction will be upgrading Sepanggar Bay Container Port into a transhipment hub, and also development of an air-freight and aviation hub,” he said.
He added that Sabah is also cognisant of the need to embrace Industry Revolution (IR) 4.0 and sustainable development goal.
In this regard, he said Sedia under the SDC has established Sabah Animation and Creative Content Centre (SAC3) to promote creative industry.
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The centre can lay the foundation and broader application of Information and communications technology (ICT) in design innovation and virtual reality, e-commerce and robotics, especially towards the development of future digitally enabled smart cities, and even farming.