MIRI – Sarawak has put in a request for Putrajaya to assist in opening up swaths of areas along the state’s border with Kalimantan, in line with the economic potential that will come with Indonesia’s new capital, Nusantara.
Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Awang Tengah Ali Hassan said Nusantara will present tremendous opportunities for economic progress for Sarawak, adding that the state needs to open up the border with more roads and immigration points.
“We have presented Putrajaya with our plans for the Sarawak-Kalimantan border development plans,” he said in a statement.
Awang Tengah added that he had a meeting in Putrajaya with Minister in the Prime Minister Department (Economic Development) Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed on this matter, and also spoke to Sabah and Sarawak Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Maximus Ongkili.
“The new Indonesian capital in Kalimantan offers numerous opportunities for business and industries in Sarawak. We must ready the infrastructure needed to link Sarawak with the rest of Kalimantan.”
Indonesia is clearing areas in Kalimantan to relocate its capital city from Jakarta to Nusanatara in the next 20 years.
