KUCHING: The announcement of Budget 2011 on October 15 by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak officially marked the start of the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP), designed to put the nation on track to become a highincome nation by 2020.
The relevant document ‘Economic Transformation Programme: The Roadmap for Malaysia’ was launched yesterday by Najib after discussions with industry leaders in the National Key Economic Areas (NKEAs) and Open Days with the public to obtain feedback on the ETP.
Where Sarawak is concerned, the state will benefit from 11 NKEAs and 68 Entry Point Projects (EPPs) under the ETP with special emphasis on the Oil, Gas & Energy sector, Electrical & Electronics (E&E) sector, Palm Oil sector and Agriculture NKEAs.
Najib said, “The EPPs can deliver up to 31 per cent of the incremental growth required and a further 10 per cent through multiplier effects. Business opportunities could deliver an additional 33 per cent growth, with the remaining 26 per cent of incremental growth coming from non-NKEA sectors.”
The Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) also stood to benefit from the EPPs, especially those under the E&E NKEA.
Sarawak Chief Minister, Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud stated, “Sarawak is an excellent site for silicon wafer substrate manufacturing as well as solar silicon ingots due to the availability of highquality silica.”
He also mentioned that the state targeted the commencement of one substrate plant by 2012 and a second two years later.
The count ry’ s rural population which currently numbers 8.7 million people; of which 2.5 million or 25 per cent of the total were from Sarawak will be included in 25 EPPs with an estimated gross national income (GNI) impact of RM66 billion by 2020.
It is expected to generate 323,596 incremental jobs for this segment of the nation’s citizens.
The Palm Oil NKEA will also be of significance to the state and key initiatives such as accelerating the replanting of palm oil, improving fresh fruit bunch yield, improving workers’ productivity through mechanised harvesting and increasing oil extraction rate will improve the income status of rural Sarawakians.
“The ETP aims to transform agriculture into ‘agribusiness’, moving towards an inc lus ive model anchored on marketcentricity, economies of scale and value chain integration, “ Taib added.
Furthermore, the state is one of those slated for repl icat ing Integrated Aquaculture Models (IZAQs) to tap the market for premium shrimps.
Taib further emphasised on the need for Sarawak to seize this opportunity as the market for fully certifi ed and traceable seafood had increased from 20,000 metric tonnes to 600,000 metric tonnes over the last five years.
Datuk Idris Jala, chief executive officer of the Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu) who is the authori ty on the ETP stressed, “Malaysia has no time to lose. We need a complete, radical economic transformation.
“The days of depending on traditional growth engines are over. If we continue on the current economic model, we risk getting stuck in a middleincome trap and continue to lose out on talent necessary to support a high-income economy.”
He further explained that the ETP was essentially the roadmap for Malaysia; cocreated by both the public and private sectors.
“It marks a fundamental departure in the approach towards economic planning in order to achieve developed nation status in 2020. It is also action-oriented and performance-focused, with well-developed and specific deliverables to grow each NKEA.
“It is the way forward,” concluded Idris.