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- Awang Tengah (fifth left) and other VIPs having a group photo with the participants of the district-level ‘Entrepreneurship Empowerment Programme: Food Industry’. — Photos by Chimon Upon
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- Awang Tengah (centre) admiring some of the SME products on display at the district-level ‘Entrepreneurship Empowerment Programme: Food Industry’. Also seen are Dr Wahbi (left), Naroden (second right) and Julaihi (right).
LUNDU: Sarawak has signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with a China-based company to invest USD3 billion (RM13 billion) in the steel industry in Samalaju Industrial Park, says Minister of Industrial Development Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan.
He said the company is currently conducting a feasibility study and the result would be known in June.
“We have signed the MoA with just one company from China for the proposed steel industry at Samalaju Industrial Park,” Awang Tengah told the media after launching the district-level ‘Entrepreneurship Empowerment Programme: Food Industry’ held at the Lundu community hall here yesterday.
Earlier in his speech, he revealed that Sarawak had for two consecutive years managed to attract the second largest investment after Johor in 2014 and 2015.
“In 2014 and 2015 Sarawak had managed to retain its position as the second most attractive in Malaysia with a total investment of RM9.64 billion after Johor which has RM21.1 billion. And in 2015, we attracted an investment worth RM11.81 against Johor’s RM31.1 billion,” he said, adding that he has no statistics for last year yet.
On another note, Awang Tengah, who is also the Second Minister of Resource Planning and Environment, pointed out that 97 per cent of the country’s economy was based on small medium enterprises (SMEs).
“This shows how important SMEs are to our economy. So I hope all of you who are present here today will take up this challenge to become successful entrepreneurs a reality. Of course, you have to start your business from small, then you will grow. But the most important thing is that you must be serious and be focused on your undertakings. No business can just suddenly become big and successful if the owners are not working very hard,” he said.
Awang Tengah also hoped that more people from Tanjong Datu will take up their own business seriously.
“Never be shy to sell cakes, handicraft and furniture. We all have to start somewhere. And if we persevere we will succeed,” he added.
Assistant Minister for Entrepreneur Development Datuk Naroden Majais also spoke at the function.
Present were Speaker of the State Legislative Assembly Datuk Amar Mohd Asfia Awang Nassar, Assistant Minister for Industrial Development Datuk Julaihi Nahrawi, Lebuhraya Borneo Utara Sdn Bhd (LBU) chairman and former Senate president Tan Sri Ahmad Urai and former Saribas assemblyman Dato Dr Wahbi Junaidi.