PADANG BESAR: The establishment of the Perlis Inland Port (PIP) is very timely to boost trade between Malaysia and Thailand, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said.
He said currently total trade between Malaysia and Thailand was worth US$23 billion (RM96.78 billion), of which US$10.5 billion (RM44.18 billion) was contributed through cross-border trade.
“My first official visit to Thailand in February proved the commitment between both countries in enhancing bilateral relations and cooperation in various fields such as trade and investment, agriculture, education, and manpower.
“Malaysia and Thailand have also agreed to increase the value of trade (between both countries) to US$30 billion (RM126.23 billion) by 2025,“ he said at the launch of the PIP and ‘Bonded Road’ here today.
The event was graced by the Raja of Perlis Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Putra Jamalullail who was accompanied by the Raja Muda of Perlis Tuanku Syed Faizuddin Putra Jamalullail.
Perlis Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Azlan Man and Northern Corridor Implementation Authority (NCIA) chief executive Mohammad Haris Kader Sultan were present.
Ismail Sabri said being strategically located near the Malaysia-Thailand border, Perlis has the edge to benefit from various economic and business opportunities in cross-border businesses.
He said the PIP would add value to strategic projects in the Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER) in Perlis, namely the Chuping Valley Industrial Area (CVIA), Chuping Agro Valley (CAV), NCER Agribio Economic Zone (NAEZ), and Perlis Super Fruits Valley.
The Prime Minister said following the launch of the PIP, the CVIA is expected to transform Perlis and the NCER economy through increased investment and jobs for locals, thus reducing the migration of locals.
Despite being newly launched, he said the CVIA managed to attract a committed investment of RM4.5 billion which will generate almost 12,000 jobs.
“In this regard, NCIA will continue to enhance its integrated transportation connectivity system with a holistic transportation and logistics infrastructure, thereby enabling PIP to enhance investor attractiveness to NCER,” he said.
In another development, Ismail Sabri said Perlis was on a post-pandemic economic growth trajectory which could be seen from increased trade volume through the state.
He said trade worth RM7.9 billion through the state was recorded for the period of January to December last year compared with RM5.4 billion in the same period of 2020 with labour force participation of 64.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2021 from 63 per cent in the period same of 2020.
“Having been known as an agriculture-based state for a long time, Perlis is now ready to take steps towards transformation into a modern industrial state with high-impact strategic projects such as PIP and CVIA,“ he said.
Besides, Ismail Sabri said the NCER shows bright prospects for growth, with the projected growth of the region’s gross domestic product of between 6.5 per cent and 6.9 per cent in the 2022 recovery period.
“Based on positive economic indicators and ensuring more Malaysian families in the region reaping the benefits (from the development), the Perlis government and NCER need to continue to increase competitiveness in the post-Covid-19 era to attract more domestic and international investment,“ he said. — Bernama
