Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Government has set various plans in motion and implemented initiatives, particularly through the Hala Tuju Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) development plan, to make the State more attractive for investors, said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
He said the State Government’s commitment to address various challenges, including infrastructure and basic amenities, in order to spur economic growth was evident by the substantial allocation of RM2.63 billion for infrastructure development programmes and public amenities in the State Budget this year.
Hajiji said this in his speech text which was read by state Finance Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun at the Sabah Investors Forum, here, Monday.
The forum, organised by Sabah Development Bank Bhd with investors-coordination support from the RHB Investment Bank, was timely as it would provide the platform for investors to engage with the State Government on key recent and upcoming developments that will spur the growth of Sabah and how the State Government will facilitate and support these developments.
Hajiji said RM679.85 million was allocated to manage and address the critical issue of clean water supply while RM430.84 million was channelled to infrastructure maintenance.
Another significant action plan, he said, was enhancing the road connectivity and the State Government is committed to completing the Pan Borneo Highway project as well as adding other road linkages outside the project, some of which are in the construction phase.
To help transition the State’s dependence on non-renewable energy sources to renewable energy, the Chief Minister said Sabah has launched the Sabah Energy Roadmap and Master Plan 2040.
“To improve hydro capacity, we launched the Ulu Padas hydroelectric project last December which can contribute some 187.5MW and also has the potential to supply some 6,000 million litres daily (MLD) of water.
“The capacity of existing water treatment plants has also been increased,” he added.
