KOTA KINABALU: Sabah recorded RM7.3 billion in manufacturing investments in the first quarter of this year, making it Malaysia’s top destination for the sector.
Industrial Development and Entrepreneurship Minister Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe said local SMEs must not rely solely on foreign capital and should industrialise to remain competitive.
Phoong announced RM15 million in state funding to help SMEs automate, upgrade machinery, and expand while noting Sabah’s exports rose 11 per cent up to May.
window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []};googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.defineSlot('/22826383987/dailyexpress_inline', [1, 1], 'gpt-passback').addService(googletag.pubads());googletag.enableServices();googletag.display('gpt-passback');});He also highlighted Sabah’s ongoing industrial push, including a 100MW Battery Energy Storage System in Lahad Datu and AirAsia’s new KK–Taipei–Fukuoka route.
Phoong cautioned against implementing overlapping federal policies and stressed that economic reforms must not burden SMEs as Sabah’s unemployment rate improved to 6.7 per cent.
