Kudat port plan on course
Published on: Wednesday, October 02, 2019
By: Bernama
KOTA KINABALU: The State Government will push for the development of a deep-water port in Kudat as part of its plan to invigorate Sabah’s northern area and provide the state with another strategic centre for trade.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal (pic) said the government plans to position Kudat as the epicentre for aquaculture and agriculture with direct trading with China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Hong Kong.
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He said Sabah stands to benefit from Indonesia’s plan to move its capital to East Kalimantan.
“Sabah and Sarawak will take on a strategic significance like never before. The opportunities for Sabah’s trading base to broaden and merge with a bigger hinterland is inevitable.
“The Pan Borneo Highway linkage will further expedite this and connect us to what will be a robust and economically-charged city,” he said in a speech read by Sabah Health and People’s Wellbeing Minister Datuk Frankie Poon Ming Fung at the opening of the Second Sabah Port Forum, Tuesday.
Also present were Transport Deputy Minister Datuk Kamarudin Jaffar and the chairman of Suria Capital Holdings Bhd (Suria Capital) and Sabah Ports Sdn Bhd (SPSB) Tan Sri Ibrahim Menudin.
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Organised by Suria Capital and SPSB, the two-day forum themed “Building the New Future: Unlocking Sabah’s Maritime Potentials” discussed issues related to the development of logistics and connectivity in Sabah, including cross-border trade, free-trade zone and maximising investment potentials in the aforementioned sectors.
Mohd Shafie said even though it is still too early to assess the true impact of the development, domestic businesses must have a game plan and act on the opportunities and spillovers the development is set to bring.
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“To progress into a high achieving state, collaboration and facilitation between government agencies and business entities must be forged for an optimal working relationship,” he said.
He also expressed his appreciation of the Transport Ministry’s efforts in strengthening Sabah’s logistics industry and its support towards boosting economic growth through the development of logistical capacities.
Meanwhile, Ibrahim in his speech said Suria Capital and SPSB had facilitated the state government by providing sustainable port services in Sabah and to-date, has saved the state government nearly RM10 billion in port infrastructure costs since the port’s privatisation in 2004.
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“Suria Capital has contributed a steady stream of income to the state government by way of dividends and lease payments.
“Moving forward, we will continue to pledge our commitment to fulfil our mandated role in the provision of highly efficient port services and infrastructure in tandem with the socioeconomic development agenda,” he added.