By Khairul Azran Hussin
SHAH ALAM, Jan 23 — Selangor aims to grow the aerospace industry by registering more industry players in the state to reach up to 70 per cent of total market shares.
Its Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari said the state government is in the final stage of discussion with European aerospace giant Airbus to open up its facilities in Selangor.
“In 2015, Selangor is a house for 62 per cent aerospace-related firms, which has increased to 65 per cent in 2019.
“We are confident that Selangor would be the leading investment location for the aerospace industry in the near future,” he said on RTM’s Program Bicara Politikonomi talk show last night.
In response to the perception that investors have shifted to other states, Amirudin said Selangor remains an attractive investment destination, both local and foreign.
“As of September 2019, Selangor registered a record RM16.4 billion of investment, whereas Penang reported a total investment of RM13.25 billion.
“Selangor continues to be an attractive investment hub in the country despite its competitors, Penang and Johor. This is driven by the increasing utilisation of high technology in the industries,” he said.
As Selangor continues to lead the nation in contributing to its gross domestic product (GDP), Amirudin said the state aims to contribute 30 per cent by 2030.
In 2018, Selangor had contributed 23.7 per cent to the national GDP with a total investment of over RM18.7 billion involving 241 projects.
“This was driven by a strong digital economic growth that is in line with the state government’s goals towards becoming a smart state,” he said.
Meanwhile, Amirudin said that Subang Jaya has been selected as the first location in Selangor, after Langkawi, for the Telekom Malaysia Berhad’s (TM) 5G demonstration projects for six months.
Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had on January 19 visited the 5G implementation at 11 of the Pulau Langkawi demo sites, including at the local public hospital and the Langkawi International Airport.
Amirudin had also emphasised in the interview on the focus on technical and vocational programmes for the youths, as the state government does not want the programmes to be seen as a second choice.
