Page 332 - The Guide To Sarawak

330 SARAWAK MEANS BUSINESS
Senator Dato’ Seri Idris Jala, CEO of the government’s Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu), outlines the Economic Transformation Programme to Sarawak’s then Chief Minister (now Governor), Cabinet Ministers and senior civil servants. The Sarawak administration has been cited as the role model for other states to aspire to under the ETP.
Why Sarawak?
By Y Bhg Tan Sri Datuk Amar Wilson Baya Dandot
BACKGROUND
The roots of Sarawak’s recent and growing success as a business destination reach back more than
1,000 years; archaeological research has shown that Santubong in Sarawak was a major trading port as early as the 9th Century CE. During the height of the Brunei Empire, Sarawak was economically important as a source of antimony, sago starch and jungle produce. The discovery of large oil deposits around Miri in 1910 kick-started the growth
of modern Sarawak, yet until the 1980’s the State’s economy was largely dependent on natural resources, especially oil and
gas, timber, oil palm and rubber.
From the 1990’s onwards, the State Government embarked on a process of industrial modernization, introducing electronics
and other high technology manufacturing, and developing the services sector, particularly tourism. In the 2000’s this policy was further strengthened with the announcement of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy, SCORE. The result? Sarawak now has a relatively diversified economy whilst maintaining its traditional strengths as a major oil and gas producer and a notable exporter of palm oil and timber based products.
Sarawak is set to become an important manufacturing base for technology- and energy-intensive industries
as well as a halal hub including aquaculture and resource-based industries. It is blessed with a business- friendly government, abundant raw materials, a capable and determined workforce and a well- developed service sector.
In short, Sarawak is an investor’s playground.
SARAWAK TODAY - THE FACTS AT A GLANCE Sarawak benefits not
only from its own intrinsic strengths but also from being an integral part of Malaysia. The achievements of both the State and the country are inseparable, as the following facts clearly show.
• Sarawak has maintained a positive trade balance since 1968. In 2013, total trade volume was RM147 billion, of which exports comprised