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KUALA LUMPUR \u2013 Malaysia\u2019s Economy Ministry reaffirmed the government\u2019s commitment to launching the blueprint for the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) at the Malaysia-Singapore Leaders\u2019 Retreat in the fourth quarter, amid pressure from the Johor state government to release it sooner.<\/p>\n
In a statement on July 4, Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir said the progress of the JS-SEZ<\/span><\/a> should be measured by its economic outcomes rather than the timing of the blueprint\u2019s release.<\/p>\n \u201cCurrent investment data proves that domestic and international investor confidence in the Johor market remains strong and consistent,\u201d Akmal said.<\/p>\n He said the JS-SEZ is a cross-border economic initiative involving Malaysia and Singapore, and that the launch of its blueprint must be carefully planned to ensure policy coherence, implementation readiness and investor confidence.<\/p>\n He added that unveiling the blueprint at the Leaders\u2019 Retreat reflects the government\u2019s strategy of securing bilateral commitment at the highest level while strengthening investor confidence and maximising international visibility.<\/p>\n The statement followed calls by Johor caretaker Menteri Besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi for Putrajaya to immediately release the blueprint, arguing that it was a Malaysian document that did not require Singapore\u2019s approval.<\/p>\n \u201cIt does not require the approval of the Singapore Government, but rather an engagement process and feedback from Singapore, and that process has already been completed,\u201d Onn said in a July 4 statement.<\/p>\n \u201cAll that remains is its launch by the ministry or at a ceremony decided by the Federal Government of Malaysia.\u201d<\/p>\n The two have traded remarks over the issue since July 2, when Onn first questioned the delay in releasing the document, which had originally been slated for March.<\/p>\n Anwar responded by telling the Johor chief minister not to make an issue out of the JS-SEZ, stressing that the initiative is proceeding according to plan.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a federal government project, naturally in collaboration with the state government. The matter of announcements and signing is between the Prime Minister of Malaysia and the Prime Minister of Singapore,\u201d Anwar said on July 3.<\/p>\n The JS-SEZ aims to integrate the economies of Johor and Singapore by attracting high-value investments, improving cross-border connectivity and developing complementary industries. It was formally launched by both countries in January 2025 and covers nine flagship economic zones across Johor.<\/p>\n The initiative has emerged as a key campaign issue in the Johor state election after Onn dissolved the state assembly on June 1, paving the way for polls on July 11.<\/p>\n Onn has touted the JS-SEZ as one of his administration\u2019s signature achievements in seeking a fresh mandate from Johor\u2019s 2.7 million voters.<\/p>\n During a campaign speech on June 6, he pledged that revenue generated from the JS-SEZ would benefit all Johoreans rather than only those living near the development zones.<\/p>\n He said the proceeds would be channelled through various state government incentives to residents across all districts.<\/p>\n Since 2025, the JS-SEZ has secured RM76.98 billion (S$24.4 billion) in approved investments, with 57 per cent of the cumulative value entering the implementation stage. The initiative is expected to create 20,000 jobs in its initial years.<\/p>\n Government figures also show that RM5.49 billion in new investments was approved in the first quarter of this year.<\/p>\n The issue has also become part of the broader political contest over which coalition is best placed to deliver Johor\u2019s economic ambitions.<\/p>\n The Democratic Action Party (DAP), a component of the ruling Pakatan Harapan coalition, said Johor\u2019s progress was the result of close cooperation between the state government, the federal government and Singapore in unlocking new opportunities for the state.<\/p>\n DAP deputy chairman Nga Kor Ming, who is also Housing and Local Government Minister, said close collaboration between Putrajaya and Johor had enabled development plans, infrastructure projects and public initiatives to be implemented more efficiently.<\/p>\n \u201cClose collaboration between both levels of government has enabled development plans, infrastructure projects and public initiatives to be implemented more efficiently for the benefit of the people,\u201d Nga said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n KUALA LUMPUR \u2013 Malaysia\u2019s Economy Ministry reaffirmed the government\u2019s commitment to launching the blueprint for the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) at the Malaysia-Singapore Leaders\u2019…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":66308,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-66307","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66307","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=66307"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66307\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/66308"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=66307"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=66307"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=66307"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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