07 Feb 2011
SARAWAK first investment mission to the Middle East led by Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud
has attracted strong interest from the region's business and investment community. The state is now
anticipating high-level delegations from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations by the middle of this
month, seeking collaborations in various areas. "It took us by surprise as this is the first time we introduced Sarawak to the Middle East.
It is beyond our expectation ... they wanted to know how to participate in Sarawak as the state has a lot of resources," Tanjung Manis Food & Industrial Park Sdn Bhd executive chairman Datuk Norah Abdul Rahman told Business Times when in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, last week. Abdul Taib, who led a group of 30 people from Sarawak, was in Abu Dhabi from January 27 to February 3.
Also in the investment mission were Planning and Resource Management Minister II and Public Utilities Minister Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hassan; State Secretary Datuk Amar Mohamad Morshidi Abdul Ghani; Regional Corridor Development Authority chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Amar Wilson Baya Dandot; and Sarawak Energy Bhd CEO Torstein Dale Sjotveit. The trip was held in conjunction with Invest Malaysia 2011 Forum.
Abdul Taib met with investors from the GCC as well as prominent Arab families, including Bader Abdulaziz Kanoo; director of Saudi Arabia's conglomerate Yusuf Bin Ahmad Kanoo Co Ltd. Norah, who is also Tanjung Manis member of parliament, said the Arabs were interested in various areas in Sarawak such as renewable energy, food production, agriculture and real estate. She said they are also attracted to the 10 priority industries under the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE), especially the halal hub and food security.
Tanjung Manis Halal Hub, particularly, has received a lot of enquiries as the current emphasis in the Middle East and North Africa is food security. Norah said the investors want to utilise cheap energy in the state, particularly hydropower in food production as it lowers the production cost. Sarawak also has abundant land while the weather allows food production activities throughout the year. "Their concern is whether they can bring foreign talent in food production such as scientists and food experts," she said.
Tanjung Manis - which sits on over 77,000ha of agricultural land in Sarawak - is one of the components under SCORE. SCORE is a major initiative to accelerate the state's economic growth and development, as well as improve Sarawakians' quality of life. The core of the corridor is the energy resources, particularly hydropower, coal and natural gas found in abundance within the central region. Norah said Sarawak is very proactive in co-investment activities, where the state participates with investors in projects.
