MIRI – Sarawak Governor Tun Abdul Taib Mahmud has urged the state government and the private sectors to aggressively tap into the potential of Nusantara, the new Indonesian capital city that is being developed south of the border in neighbouring Kalimantan.
Taib, a former Sarawak chief minister, said there will be mega developments coming soon along the border.
“Look out for the vast opportunities that will be generated from Nusantara. The private sector must be ready to get into these developments along with the state government,” he said at the opening of the state assembly meeting in Kuching today.
“It is good to note that Sarawak is already establishing electricity generation links with Nusantara.
“There are many projects that will be generated in the near future and for years to come,” he said.
On April 2, Datuk Seri Maximus Ongkili, the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of Sabah and Sarawak affairs, led a government delegation to Nusantara. Accompanying him were state ministers from Sabah and Sarawak.
Sarawak was represented by Deputy Premier Datuk Awang Tengah Ali Hassan.
The delegation went to Titik Nol, the central location in Nusantara.
Ongkili was quoted as saying that the Indonesian officials in Nusantara had given the Malaysian delegation a briefing and preview of the city’s construction masterplan.
He said Putrajaya will liaise with Indonesia to see how Malaysians can participate in the Nusantara projects, especially those involving infrastructure.
“We can help them realise the development plans by bringing in our private sectors too from Sabah and Sarawak,” said Ongkili.
The Sarawak state government had also last month deployed a high-level ministerial visit to Nusantara.
The deputy premier’s office said in a press statement last week that Awang Tengah held meetings with Indonesian government officials and private sector groups in Nusantara.
“The creation of Nusantara will create enormous socio-economic spin-offs that will benefit the whole of Borneo. Sarawak and Sabah will reap the benefits too,” said the statement.
Sarawak has also extended invitations to private groups in Kalimantan to forge business and industrial links.
The state is already drawing up the designs for a massive network of highways adjacent to the Kalimantan border, running parallel to the highway being built on the Kalimantan side.
The two sides will then be linked via major border crossings to be constructed.
“We have the longest international border in Malaysia in this Sarawak-Kalimantan boundary,” said Sarawak Labour, Immigration and Project Monitoring Deputy Minister Datuk Gerawat Gala.
“We want the boundary to have a network of highways running parallel with the one being built by Indonesia on the Kalimantan side that will link with their new capital (Nusantara),” he said.
Earlier last month, Sarawak and Indonesia officially entered into talks on how Sarawak can play a big role in developing hydro-electric dam projects in North Kalimantan.
The state government wants to help the Indonesian government develop their power plants to supply electricity to Nusantara.
Sarawak Energy will work with Indonesia through a partnership in developing the Mentarang Induk Hydroelectric Power Plant in North Kalimantan.
Indonesia intends to relocate its capital city from Jakarta to Nusantara within the next 20 years. – The Vibes, May 17, 2022
