Malaysia’s poster boy state

Sarawak has recorded impressive growth in the last few years and is fast becoming a role model for the other states.

SARAWAK is rising.

There is no doubt about it because in terms of leadership, growth, infrastructure, renewable energy, and education, the Borneo state has become the poster boy for Malaysia.

A year ago, the World Bank announced that the gross national income (GNI) per capita in Sarawak exceeded US$13,205 (RM61,500) for the first time, making it a high-income state in Malaysia.

And Sarawak’s 2022 gross domestic product (GDP) per capita figure of more than RM80,000 means that it is well ahead of the likes of Penang (RM70,000) and Selangor (RM60,000).

But these are just figures, impressive no doubt, but do they translate into a better way of life for the average Sarawakian as opposed to those people in Peninsular Malaysia?

You would really need to make a trip to the state capital Kuching to discover Sarawak for yourself. And so, five years after my last trip, I was once again at the Kuching International Airport last week. And it turned out to be a real revelation.

The Grab driver who picked me up at the airport was named Sylvester Stallone Anak Kennedy. Being named after a famous American actor is a great conversation starter (his father is a big Rocky fan), but Sylvester also told me how driving a grab could afford him a decent living.

“In the early 2000s, the village I come from – Sematan, about a two-hour drive from Kuching – did not have electricity or piped water. But all that has changed now.

“My family has moved to Kuching and our lives have improved,” he told me.

And Kuching five years on from my last visit has changed too. There are traffic jams now, although the city is cleaner than I remember.

Its public transport system is going green. Hydrogen fuel cell buses are a common sight and by next year Kuching will have a hydrogen-powered smart tram running on three lines across the city.

Despite the focus on renewable energy and high-end manufacturing, Kuching still retains an old-world charm. The closest city that I can compare it to would be Ipoh.

The city’s waterfront is a hive of activity, with locals and tourists, and the Sarawak River, which bisects Kuching, is magical at night.

At a dinner in a popular restaurant at night, we witnessed health officers from Dewan Bandaraya Kuching Utara inspecting the premises. One of the officers told me that these inspections are done every month to ensure proper cleanliness is maintained.

The state is fiercely independent from the peninsula and intends to make its mark in the world. It actively promotes the use of English, not only in schools but also in government communications. The creation of propriety names like Premier (instead of chief minister), Sarawak Pay (as opposed to other payment gateways like Touch ‘n Go) and Petros (state-owned Petroleum Sarawak Berhad), are calculated moves.

This last entity is the cause of friction with the Federal Government. Some 70% of Malaysia’s oil reserves lies in waters off its coast, and this brings in huge revenue for the country.

The state has other abundant resources like palm oil and is rich in minerals such as coal, bauxite, limestone, silica sand and even gold.

But Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg, popularly known as Abang Jo, is wary of getting caught in the “resource curse” trap.

“The Sarawak government also invests in human capital development to ensure our people are equipped with the right skills to increase their average household income to RM15,000 per month by 2030,” he said last year.

This emphasis on human capital development is necessary because the state is severely underpopulated – only 2.5 million people in a state that is 90% the size of Peninsular Malaysia.

Abang Jo recently announced that Sarawak was open to the idea of immigration. However, prospective investors must deposit at least RM2mil or purchase property worth not less than RM1.5mil to obtain permanent residency (PR) in the state.

Perhaps the state government should also be looking at getting young people to move there rather than focusing on high net worth individuals. A different set of criteria for PR status should also include skills-based qualifications.

Despite the many justified plaudits, Sarawak still needs to get its act together in terms of infrastructure improvements.

Poverty in parts of the interior is still a problem. A few months ago, a friend of mine from Kuala Lumpur had to sponsor generator sets for a secondary school which was barely 50km away from Kuching.

It makes no sense that Sarawakians in the interior still do not have access to the most important necessities such as electricity and clean water.

If the state government can sort this out, the future looks bright for Sarawak. The state has many admirers and has started to attract both foreign investments as well as tourists by the busloads.

It has more national parks and wildlife reserves than the rest of Malaysia combined and an amazing variety of unique plant and animal life. It is home to almost 30 different ethnic groups, each with its own distinct culture and traditions, and hospitality to visitors is a way of life.

There is a distinct lack of racial and religious strife here and in many respects, Malaysia as a whole can learn from Sarawak and its peoples.