Saturday 31 May 2014

Spurring south Johor growth

Spurring south Johor growth

The tourism sector has been identified as one of the main industries, besides the oil and gas sector, that will spearhead Johor's future development growth.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said tourism is set to have a big potential in south Johor following the next phase of Iskandar Malaysia's development plans.

"We will look at further developing the tourism sector in Iskandar Malaysia since the establishment of Legoland Malaysia, Pinewood Studios Iskandar and Sanrio Hello Kitty Town in south Johor has showed that they have potential to draw visitors," he said.

Muhyiddin said this after attending a briefing on Johor's development plans with the State Economic Planning Unit and also the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda) at the Sultan Ismail building in Kota Iskandar here on Tuesday.

Present were Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin and senior state officials.

Muhyiddin, who was on a one-day visit to Johor, said he was confident that tourism will grow in south Johor as it is has potential to be a driving force besides the oil and gas sector for the state's growth.

Johor has been at the forefront of the country's development via the Iskandar Malaysia economic projects.

Located in the southern part of Johor, Iskandar, which spans 2,217 sq km and is three times bigger than Singapore, was mooted more than seven years ago.

At present, Irda and various stakeholders are working on the second phase of south Johor's Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP).

Muhyiddin said since Iskandar Malaysia was established, it has recorded a cumulative total investment of more than RM130 billion where, of the total, RM60 billion represented investments that had been realised with the creation of more than 600,000 jobs.

"This figure shows that Johor will continue to grow rapidly in future," said Muhyiddin who was also a former Johor Menteri Besar.

Earlier, Muhyiddin said he was upbeat with the proposed development plans for Johor's future growth that was briefed to him by the state government and also Irda.

He said he was briefed on two key areas which are the state's development plan and also the the people-centric Suara Hati Johor plan.

Muhyiddin said the plans, which are the effort of the state government, is vital for Johor's overall future growth.

"There is a comprehensive plan to also develop support industries, especially small and medium enterprises, human capital and skilled workforce."

The plan will also see development in the northern areas of Johor such as the districts of Muar and Batu Pahat.

"I am satisfied with the various programmes put in place to ensure the state's future sustainability and growth," he said, adding that the two main areas are also a good effort by the state government to strengthen its key results areas.


Dataran Mahkota Kota Iskandar in Nusajaya is a popular among tourists.

~News courtesy of New Straits Times~

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