Digital technology deals in Malaysia hit RM110bil - MDEC CEO

Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) chief executive officer Mahadhir Aziz

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has facilitated RM110 billion in digital opportunities, almost double the target under the Malaysia Digital Blueprint’s (MyDigital) initiative, said Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) chief executive officer Mahadhir Aziz.

He said factors such as Singapore’s moratorium on new data centres and the shift of data centre investment to Malaysia have helped the country achieve MyDigital’s RM70 billion target earlier than 2025.

"A proposal to increase the overall long-term target from RM 70 billion to RM 130 billion has been sent to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

"So Insyallah, the prime minister will announce an upgrade to that target soon to RM 130 billion. That is a proposal now, while it has not been finalised, but the number is good,” he said at the Malaysia Digital Expo (MDX) 2023 media gathering here recently.

He said MDEC’s aspiration is for Malaysia to be Asean’s digital heart and to be known as the digital tiger of Asia.

Following MDEC’s recent export opportunities with the Ministry of Communications and Digital to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Mahadhir said discussions with the emirates’ property giant, Damac Group, are still in the early stages as the group is exploring opportunities to invest in data centre business in this region.

"Because of the good relationship between Malaysia and the UAE, we are the best place for DAMAC to consider. They are looking at a few locations within Malaysia itself.

"I think for any digital technology deals, whether it is a small outlay versus big data centre investments, it would take between one to three years to be realised,” he said.

The MDX 2023 Grand Finale will be held from Nov 6-8, 2023, at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre, Kuala Lumpur, and incorporates a panel session between Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and OpenAI’s former head of Go-to-Market, Zack Kass as well as the participation of 45 other distinguished speakers. - Bernama