ECER exceeds 2020 investment target
As end-2017, economic region attracted RM111.6b worth of private investments
THE East Coast Economic Region (ECER) enters its 10th year of establishment on a solid foundation and will continue to benefit the rakyat via its socioeconomic transformation.
As of end of last year, the region had successfully attracted RM111.6 billion in private investments, surpassing its 2020 investment target three years ahead of schedule.
ECER’s transformation has brought about positive impact to more than 950,000 rakyat, or 11 per cent of the region’s total population, directly and indirectly, said East Coast Economic Region Development Council (ECERDC) in a statement yesterday.
This has been made possible through more than 154,500 jobs and 27,000 entrepreneurial opportunities created by private investors and human capital development programmes in ECER, which covers Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang, as well as Mersing in Johor.
“ECER’s strong performance in its socio-economic transformation serves as a testament to the federal government’s delivery of high-impact ‘infra-rakyat’ and private investment projects as well as inclusive human capital development programmes implemented in collaboration with the respective state governments.
“These efforts have narrowed the socio-economic gap between the east and west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, and improved the livelihood of the rakyat through greater wealth creation by increasing jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities,” said ECERDC chief executive officer Datuk Seri Jebasingam Issace John.
Of the total private investment in ECER, domestic direct investment has emerged as a key contributor to economic growth and an important source of job creation.
Domestic investments, mainly driven by local micro, small and medium enterprises, contributed 46 per cent to the total investment committed in ECER, reinforcing their pivotal role as the backbone of the socio-economic growth of the region.
Bumiputera investments under the Teraju@ECER programme has also made a significant contribution, contributing 14 per cent to the total private investment in ECER.
These investments have seen 177 projects worth RM16.2 billion in ECER benefiting from ECERDC’s tax incentives or Teraju@ECER’s facilitation funds.
From these investments, more than 19,100 job opportunities will be generated.
“The growth of domestic direct investment reflects ECER’s conducive and inclusive business environment, which has further catalysed the empowerment of local entrepreneurs.
“Today, local entre-preneurs are leading the socio-economic transformation in their respective communities by creating the ecosystem for jobs and businesses, which in turn will help improve the livelihood of the rakyat,” said Jebasingam.
One of ECER’s significant milestones this year will be the operationalisation of Kuantan Port as a deep-water port to fulfil the demand for bigger vessels and higher traffic, reinforcing the region as the gateway to the AsiaPacific region.
The completion of Kuantan Port’s Phase 1A expansion, which will see the port doubling its capacity to 52 million freight weight tonnes, will coincide with the full operations of Alliance Steel (M) Sdn Bhd’s modern integrated steel mill, one of the largest investments in the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park.
Meanwhile, ECERDC said growth momentum across ECER would be further fuelled with the construction of the East Coast Rail Line (ECRL).
As construction works have commenced in multiple areas along the ECRL alignment, this has indirectly created more jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities for the locals.
This game-changer project will connect two major ports in Peninsular Malaysia — Port Klang and Kuantan Port — with key industrial as well as tourism hubs and encourage greater transit-oriented developments in ECER.
As an important backbone of transportation infrastructure, the enhanced connectivity and economic activities resulting from this project are expected to boost ECER’s gross domestic product by up to 1.5 per cent, said ECERDC.