PM To Launch East Cost's Masterplan In Three States

obmar · Site Admin Joined: 14 Apr 2006 Posts: 5697

October 28, 2007 12:54 PM

PM To Launch East Cost's Masterplan In Three States

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 28 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi will launch the East Coast Economic Region's (ECER) masterplan in Terengganu and Kelantan on Monday and in Pahang the next day.

With him at the launches will be the menteris besar of the states including Johor's.

The "people-centric" ECER masterplan, crafted by Petroliam Nasional Bhd, involves 227 projects in transportation, infrastructure, tourism, education, manufacturing, the oil and gas sector and agriculture.

The Terengganu launch will be at 9am at Padang Awam, Batu Burok, while the Kelantan launch will be at 3pm at Padang Kompleks Sekolah-Sekolah Wakaf Mek Zainab.

In Pahang, the ceremony will start at 9am at Padang City Hall, Kuantan.

At the launch venues, a three-day exhibition will also be held to help create and enhance public awareness on the ECER and its key projects and initiatives.

Abdullah will also witness the signing of three memorandums of understanding (MOUs), one each in the respective states.

The MOUs are for projects linked to the agriculture sector in line with the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP) initiative.

Under the 9MP, the agriculture sector will be the third engine of economic growth with an allocation of RM11.4 billion.

At the ECER launch in Kuala Terengganu, the Department of Veterinary Services, Marditech Corp Sdn Bhd and Terengganu Agrotech Development Corp Sdn Bhd will sign an MOU to set up a nucleus goat breeding research centre.

The 900-hectare centre will conduct research and development on goat breeding and husbandry. The aim is to boost income from goat breeding and reduce the country's mutton import.

In Kota Baharu, University Malaysia Kelantan and Lembaga Kemajuan Kelantan Selatan will sign an MOU to set up an agropolitan project.

The agropolitan initiative is an all-encompassing approach to agriculture from providing quality seeds to good agriculture practices and business mentoring, involving the participation of the public and private sectors, universities and social institutions.

In Kuantan, the Department of Veterinary Services, Federal Land Development Authority and Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute will sign an MOU to set up a nucleus cattle breeding research centre.

The 200-ha centre, which will house 3,000 breeders, will focus on an accelerated programme to increase the quantity and quality of cattle in the country.

The ECER initiative echoes the prime minister's stated aim of eradicating poverty and building human capital.

It is designed to raise incomes for nearly four million people, representing 15 per cent of the country's total population, create 560,000 jobs and attract some RM112 billion worth of investments over the next 12 years.

It will address development imbalance between the east and west coasts of Peninsular Malaysia, and the income disparities between urban and rural areas within the region.

ECER is the third economic region to be launched, after the Iskandar Development Region covering southern Johor, and the Northern Corridor Economic Region covering Perlis, Kedah, Pulau Pinang and the northern part of Perak. Similar corridors are to be launched in Sabah and Sarawak as well.

The gross domestic product growth in the ECER will be raised to 7.2 percent by 2020 from 5.7 percent in 2005.

-- BERNAMA