By Selangor Journal Team
SHAH ALAM, Oct 5 — Selangor is striving to be the number one state in Southeast Asia in building a dignified and resilient economy, said Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.
To achieve this, he stressed the need for the state government to look beyond just its competition in the region.
Despite consistently being Malaysia’s highest Gross Domestic Product contributor, the administration should not rest on its laurels.
“That was the driving force behind RS-1, which I launched in August last year, the driving force to not be complacent or content with our successes, but understanding that we are not competing to be Malaysia’s best state.
“Rather, we are competing to be the number one state in Southeast Asia, better than Jakarta, Manila, Bangkok, or Hanoi. We must start looking beyond Southeast Asia to the likes of Tokyo, Seoul, Shenzhen, Singapore, Melbourne, and Sydney.
“These are our competition, and RS-1 has a singular aim to build a dignified, resilient and sustainable economy using digitisation as the thrust to push us forward,” Amirudin said during the signing ceremony between Daiso Malaysia Group Sdn Bhd and Kajima-Suncon Joint Venture, at Courtyard by Marriott Setia Alam Hotel earlier today.
RS-1 is the first document of its kind in the country, developed to fulfil the needs of its people and aims to make Selangor a smart, liveable, and prosperous state by 2025.
It contains four strategic themes, five policy catalysts, and 262 initiatives which include 19 game-changing projects.
Looking ahead, the Menteri Besar said RS-1’s upcoming mid-term review would focus on creating and offering high-value jobs to Selangor residents and implementing several high-impact projects.
These include a new rail infrastructure initiative from Klang to Kuala Selangor and Sabak Bernam, and developing a fully digitised third port in Pulau Carey.
The review process will begin after the launching of the 2024 Selangor Budget, which is scheduled for tabling next month.
Meanwhile, Amirudin said 2023 is also a year when Malaysia is ‘put back on the right track’, crediting Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for four important documents which crystallise the country’s medium-term future.
Among them are the Madani Economy framework, which seeks to build a resilient and dignified society by propelling Malaysia as a top 30 economy globally, and the National Energy Transition Roadmap, which focuses on accelerating the transition from coal and gas-fired power plants to more sustainable renewable energy.
“The Investment, Trade, and Industry Ministry recently launched a plan to re-energise Malaysia’s industrial capacity after going through a period of premature deindustrialisation, and the New Industrial Master Plan seeks to correct this.
“About two weeks ago, Parliament passed the 12th Malaysian Plan Mid-Term Review to offer better jobs and salaries, to build a bigger middle class in Malaysia,” he said, adding the (national) Budget 2024 scheduled for tabling on October 13 will focus on key improvements in education and healthcare.
