PETALING JAYA: Malaysia approved 5,350 manufacturing projects worth RM707.2bil between 2021 and March this year, with foreign investments (FIs) accounting for more than 80% of the total approved investments, says Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani.
The Investment, Trade and Industry Minister said these projects are expected to create 452,726 new jobs.
"Of the total approved investments, foreign investment (FI) accounted for RM579.6bil, or 82%, while domestic investment (DI) contributed RM127.6bil, or 18%," he said in a parliamentary written reply in response to a question from Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein (BN-Sembrong).
Hishammuddin had asked the Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry to state the actual percentage of approved foreign direct investment (FDI) that has been realised on the ground, and the mechanisms in place to ensure that the economic spillover from such investments directly benefits the local SME vendor supply chain.
Johari said in general, approved projects take between 18 and 24 months to be realised, depending on factors such as project complexity, scale and prevailing economic conditions.
"Under the definitions used by my Ministry and The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida), a project is considered realised or implemented if it has reached one of the following stages: commencement of operations, installation of machinery, or the construction or leasing of factories, buildings or warehouses.
"As of Dec 31, 2025, a total of 4,114 projects, or 77% of approved manufacturing projects, had been implemented, involving investments worth RM506bil and creating 344,531 new jobs.
"Of this amount, foreign investment contributed RM414.4bil, or 81.9%, while domestic investment accounted for RM91.5bil, or 18.1%," he explained.
Addressing concerns over whether foreign investments benefit local businesses, he said the government has introduced several measures to strengthen local supply chains and increase participation by local companies.
He said the government has introduced several measures to strengthen local supply chains and increase participation by local companies.
These include supply chain seminars to connect local micro, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with multinational corporations, mandatory vendor development and collaboration programmes for selected high-value investments, and the introduction of the New Incentive Framework (NIF) on March 1 this year.
He added that the government remains committed to ensuring that approved foreign investments are realised and contribute meaningfully to the country's economic growth and industrial development.
