JOHOR BARU: The planned Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) is set to be realised with the agreement on the highly anticipated cooperation to be inked on Monday.
The signing ceremony will take place in Kuala Lumpur as the countries’ top leaders attend a two-day retreat next week, according to Johor investment, trade, consumer affairs and human resources committee chairman Lee Ting Han when contacted yesterday.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will host his Singapore counterpart Lawrence Wong during their retreat in Putrajaya on Monday and Tuesday.
Last month, Anwar announced the signing of the JS-SEZ agreement, initially scheduled for Dec 9, would be postponed to January 2025.
Anwar, who also serves as the Finance Minister, said the delay was due to Wong contracting Covid-19.
The deal, he added, would represent a significant step in the context of Asean and Malaysia’s positive relationship with its southern neighbour.
Those involved in the signing said that details of the JS-SEZ, including financial incentives for businesses, would be unveiled a day after the agreement signing.
It is learnt that a summary of the salient points will detail how the JS-SEZ aims to create new growth engines in southern Johor.
The JS-SEZ is expected to strengthen business collaboration between Singapore and the Iskandar Malaysia economic corridor in southern Johor and the Pengerang petrochemical hub.
The zone is being touted as a gateway for investors and companies to the Asean market.
The JS-SEZ will encompass an area of 3,505sq km that includes the cities and towns of Johor Baru, Iskandar Puteri, Pasir Gudang, Kulai, Pontian and Pengerang.
The target is to attract global firms as well as companies based in Singapore and Johor to expand their operations into the JS-SEZ to take advantage of Johor’s strong logistics infrastructure – its ports, airports and roads.
The key attractions of the special zone will include a passport-free immigration system and improved passenger rail lines to expedite travel between Johor and the city state.
According to promotional videos, the JS-SEZ is set to attract high-tech industries and create thousands of skilled jobs.
Meanwhile, Lee said Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi would go on an official visit to Qatar soon with an eye on capturing investments from the country.
Ahead of the foreign visit, state government officials recently held a meeting to coordinate their presentation with the Johor Economic Planning Division.
Lee said the Johor team would explore investment opportunities with Qatar while strengthening the state’s position as an ideal location for foreign investors.
