KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 2 — The government and rail industry players need to collaborate and work together under the spirit of the Malaysian Family to accelerate the country’s rail industry development, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong.

He said the longstanding collaboration between Malaysia Rail Industry Corporation (MARIC), Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) and Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) is highly commendable and the synergy has resulted in a readiness to delve further into technology deepening among local rail industry players.

“Increased localisation will secure domestic technology development and adoption while meeting targeted sustainable development goals.

“It also ensures high-value job creation and an acceleration of talent development,” he said in his speech at the Rail Technology and Development Symposium 2021 (Rail Ted 2021) today.

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The text of his speech was delivered by Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Henry Sum Agong.

Wee said the 12th Malaysia Plan focuses on completing the dots, a complete system that completes the last mile connectivity.

Hence, the rail industry has to co-exist with other modes of transportation to ensure a sustainable ecosystem and seamless travel with a focus on local empowerment, he added.

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Rail Ted 2021, an annual railway exhibition and conference, was held today with the theme, “Driving the Competitiveness of an Integrated, Affordable, Reliable and Smooth Urban Public Rail for First and Last Mile Mobility”.

The symposium was co-organised by MARIC, MIGHT, and UTAR, with the support from the National Rail Centre of Excellence (NRCOE).

Meanwhile, MARIC president Datuk Mohd Yusoff Sulaiman said the corporation had realised a total project value of RM4.8 billion and exported to several countries in South America, India, Vietnam, and Indonesia between 2017 and 2019.

“Moving forward, MARIC is ready to expand on the role and reach of the local rail industry players domestically through strategic public sector initiatives.

“This then will enable us to collectively build a world-class transportation system in Malaysia, and by extension export “end-to-end” rail systems to new markets internationally,” he said.

UTAR president Prof Ewe Hong added that he hoped the event and dynamism of the rail industry will be a catalyst to encourage interest among the youths to take up the study of rail engineering and technology. — Bernama