KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is looking to develop its digital creative content industry as well as local talents with the inking of a deal with one of the leading pioneers in the sector in Malaysia.
Qhazanah Sabah Berhad (Qhazanah), the state government's strategic investment arm, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with renowned animation production firm Giggle Garage Sdn Bhd (GGSB) here on Friday (Sept 9), to kick start the Industry Bridging Programme (IBP).
Ahmad Rizal (third right) exchanging signed deals with Juhaidah while Salleh (second right) and others look on.
GGSB is a local-based company that has made its name on global streaming services, such as Netflix, with its animated shows that have reached audiences in more than 100 countries.
Its most popular animation Cam & Leon had reached some 250 million views on Youtube and this has convinced Qhazanah that GGSB, as one of the leading pioneers in Malaysia's creative content industry, to be the most suitable partner to establish the IBP initiative.
Qhazanah Group chief executive officer Ahmad Rizal Dahli said they were hoping the IBP would transform the creative industry in Sabah.
He added that they were aiming to help develop a local talent pool while at the same time pave the way for more job opportunities in the creative sector.
"Through the IBP, we are hoping to tap the existing Sabahan talent pool for expansion and upskilling by providing access to the market in the digital creative industry through regional and international collaborations," he said, in a statement on Friday (Sept 9).
"The fact that GGSB was co-founded by Sabahans makes us more confident that the collaboration can pave the way for the upscaling of the content quality to international standards.
"We are hopeful to witness the capability of young digital animation creators from this state to be on par with other renowned digital animation companies.
"QSB believes that by providing them with the right support system, locally made content will captivate a worldwide audience in the near future," Ahmad Rizal added.
He said that while the creative industry had always been important to the economy, its increasing dominance as one of the crucial drivers in stimulating the post-pandemic economic recovery in Malaysia and Southeast Asia had not gone unnoticed.
Ahmad Rizal represented Qhazanah while GGSB was represented by its managing director Juhaidah Joemin at the MoU signing which was witnessed by Qhazanah deputy Group CEO, Rudy Jaglul and GGSB executive director Zeno Gabing.
Meanwhile, Ahmad Rizal said Qhazanah was also hopeful that the collaboration with GGSB could garner some attention among foreign digital content creators.
"This in turn would hopefully attract them to set up a base in Sabah.
"In Qhazanah, this is what we continue to strive for - to be objective in our role as enabler for growth and in doing so, to align our company with the core values envisioned in the state’s Sabah Maju Jaya development plan," he said.
Also present at the signing ceremony were Qhazanah chairman Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak and Qhazanah executive director Mohd Shukor Abdul Mumin.
