JOHOR BARU, April 19 — Iskandar Malaysia has recorded committed investments of RM9.33 billion in the first quarter of 2018, bringing its total cumulative committed investments from 2006 up to March 31, 2018 to RM262.43 billion.
In a statement today, Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) said, 59 per cent, or RM153.54 billion of the total amount, had been realised.
To-date, local investors accounted for RM160 billion, or 61 per cent of the total cumulative committed investments, while RM102 billion, or 39 per cent, were from foreign investors.
“From 2006 to March 2018, the top five countries with the highest cumulative committed investments in Iskandar Malaysia were China, Singapore, the US, Japan and the European Union,” said IRDA Chief Executive, Datuk Ismail Ibrahim.
He said this reflected the investors’ continuous confidence in Iskandar Malaysia as it moved towards realising its long-term development objectives.
This was also supported by the increasing number of visits to Iskandar Malaysia by various international parties, he said.
“These visits provided us with the opportunity to further highlight Iskandar Malaysia’s many strengths and opportunities and also act as a platform to strengthen relationships and exchange knowledge with international parties and global players, in line with the region’s vision to become the preferred destination for investment, work, live and play,” Ismail said.
He said Iskandar Malaysia continued to welcome foreign investments which were aligned to its nine promoted economic sectors and those that provided spillover effects to the region’s economy, environment and social agendas.
“From 2007 to March 2018, a total of 746,457 jobs were created in Johor, most of it originating from various sectors in Iskandar Malaysia, including manufacturing, hospitality, food and beverage and education,” he said.
Moving forward, Ismail said, the next seven years would not only be about attracting new investments in Iskandar Malaysia, as the investments must be inclusive so that the local communities, businesses and talents would be able to participate and benefit from the wealth generated from economic activities. — Bernama
