PM unveils 11 initiatives to transform Cyberjaya into global technology hub
CYBERJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday unveiled 11 initiatives that will firmly anchor Cyberjaya’s transformation into a smart city and global technology hub.
He said one of the initiatives was the setting up of Asia Big Data Centre with a cloud-based operating system by Winhong Information Technology Corporation Ltd here, which would see Winhong investing RM100 million over five years in the centre.
“This centre is expected to provide up to 500 high-value jobs within the five years,” he said at the celebration of Cyberjaya’s 20th anniversary.
Present were Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Minister Tan Sri Noh Omar and Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Dr Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah.
Najib said the Barrington Group and Beijing Fullrich’s Regional Fintech Hub, meanwhile, were expected to invest RM60 million over the next five years to build a cashless society here.
“The Fintech Hub aims to create 300 jobs supporting up to 3.2 billion transactions, equivalent to nearly RM80 billion in transactional value, in the fifth year that will involve about 10 million Fintech product consumers.”
He announced the setting up of the Cyberjaya Innovation Fund for the Future (CIFF).
With a commitment of RM100 million by the Finance Ministry to be disbursed by Cyberview Sdn Bhd over 10 years beginning next year, the fund will be channelled through a co-investment model for innovation and smart city-related projects located here and driven either by local, or foreign partners.
Another initiative that caught Najib’s eye was the Cyberjaya City Centre project, which he said could contribute to the growth of Cyberjaya and turn it into a global technology hub.
The Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd’s (MRCB) latest Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Project was highly anticipated to take the nation’s technology hub to the next level, he said.
“This is a game-changer that will complete the transformation of Cyberjaya to become a global technology hub and a smart city. With a gross development value (GDV) value of RM11 billion, the Cyberjaya City Centre can provide a complete ecosystem to the area,” he said.
The Cyberjaya City Centre project comprises a total land area of 56.4ha with the GDV of Phase 1 estimated at RM5.3 billion.
Najib said the Cyberjaya City Centre would be a mixed development featuring a convention centre and a hotel, office towers integrated with an MRT station, shopping mall and serviced apartments with retail outlets.
He said he was told that the first phase of the Cyberjaya City Centre project was well underway, with its convention centre and hotel scheduled to be ready by 2019.
Also taking centre stage among the slew of announcements was the launch of the Futurise Centre, a joint-venture project between Cyberview Sdn Bhd and the Malaysian Global Creativity and Innovation Centre (MaGIC).
“I have been told the Futurise Centre will act as a future innovation pioneer that will see collaborations among corporate players, higher education institutions and entrepreneurs with a value creation of RM100 million in developing innovation initiatives.”
Cyberjaya, to date, houses more than 800 technology companies, 48 of which are multinational companies.