KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia, particularly Sabah and Sarawak, has the potential to benefit economically from Indonesia’s new capital city Nusantara, says Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir.
In a parliamentary written reply dated Oct 9, the Foreign Minister said the move will open up economic cooperation in various fields such as renewable energy, construction, healthcare, eco-tourism, property development and others.
Zambry said the special allocation of RM1bil to develop and upgrade infrastructure along the Sabah-Sarawak-Kalimantan border — announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Jan 20 – will positively impact bilateral trade ties between Malaysia and Indonesia and strengthen border security.
“Attention will be given towards the development of the Immigration, Customs, Quarantine and Security (ICQS) in Tebedu, Sarawak and in Serubong, Sabah to ensure that development in Malaysia is on par with Nusantara,” he said.
Aside from that, the Border Crossing Agreement and Border Trade Agreement inked on June 8 will contribute to the improvement of socio-economic standards along the Malaysian and Indonesian border and spur bilateral trade.
Malaysia has also ratified both agreements but Indonesia has yet to do so.
Zambry said the Foreign Ministry will work with other ministries to ensure development at the Sabah-Sarawak-Kalimantan border is carried out successfully and spur the participation of Malaysian companies especially from Sabah and Sarawak.
Zambry was responding to a question from Datuk Shahelmey Yahya (BN-Putatan) on the impact of Indonesia’s new capital and the long term-plans to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries.
Indonesia is planning to move its capital from Jakarta to Nusantara in East Kalimantan.
Nusantara will share a border with Malaysia’s Borneo states.
