MICCI Penang Annual Luncheon Dialogue 2022
SPEECH BY THE CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG YAB TUAN CHOW KON YEOW
MICCI Penang Annual Luncheon Dialogue 2022
4 October 2022
St Giles Hotel, Penang
YB Dato’ Ir Ahmad Zakiyuddin Abdul Rahman
Deputy Chief Minister I
YB Prof Dr Ramasamy Palanisamy
Deputy Chief Minister II
YB Dato’ Haji Abdul Halim Hussain
Penang State Councillor for Trade and Industry & Entrepreneurial Development
YB Zairil Khir Johari
Penang State Executive Councillor for Transport & Infrastructure
YB Jagdeep Singh Deo
Penang State Executive Councillor for Housing, Local Government, Town & Country Planning
YB Soon Lip Chee
Penang State Executive Councillor for Youth & Sports
YB Chong Eng
Penang State Executive Councillor for Social Development & Non-Islamic Religious Affairs
YB Hajar Dr Norlela Ariffin
Penang State Executive Councillor for Agrotech & Food Security, Rural Development and Health
Ms Christina Tee
MICCI President
Mr Michel Van Crombrugge
Chairman of MICCI Penang and the North Branch
Dato’ Seri Lee Kah Choon
Special Investment Advisor to the Chief Minister of Penang
Dato’ Loo Lee Lian
CEO Invest Penang
Puan Saudah Mat Isa
Director MATRADE Northern Region
Cik Nurul Zahirah Ayob
Director SMECorp Penang
Dato’ Dr Ooi Kee Beng
Executive Director Penang Institute
Distinguished Panellists,
Members of the press,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is a pleasure to be here this afternoon. Thank you to Malaysia International Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MICCI) for organising and inviting me to speak at today’s dialogue session.
Today’s theme “Sustaining Penang’s Competitiveness", aptly sets the tone for all captains and members of the industry to reinforce our shared vision of sustaining a competitive industrial ecosystem. One that is capable of driving the momentum towards reaching greater heights for Penang which we all love.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The arrival of the 8 pioneer investors in Penang back in 1972 sparked the development of a vibrant industrial ecosystem and anchored the position of the state as a preferred location for MNCs.
More importantly, Penang has also nurtured numerous homegrown technopreneurs, who founded and built companies that have grown to become internationally renowned in their own right.
I am always in awe of Penang’s industrialisation journey, from a low-cost manufacturing hub to a strategic site for Industry 4.0, digitalisation, R&D and advanced manufacturing activities. Penang’s well-deserved moniker – the Silicon Valley of the East – is the result of five decades of industrial excellence. I am proud and grateful that this achievement has indeed translated into far-reaching effects on the local economy, in terms of raising the state’s gross domestic product (GDP), uplifting the skillset of the local workforce, as well as having huge economic spill-over effects in the country.
In 2021, Penang’s GDP recorded the highest year-on-year growth among all states, with 7% hike to reach RM99 billion. Being the twin engine of growth for the state, the services sector grew by 2% while manufacturing grew by 12%, both collectively contributed 95% of the state’s GDP.
In terms of investment performance, both the manufacturing and service industries collectively garnered a record high of RM84 billion in 2021, of which RM76 billion were investments from the manufacturing industry.
On the trade front, Penang not only topped the nation’s list in 2021 with an all-time high export value of RM354 billion and generated trade surplus of RM101 billion. Among which, E&E products and medical devices made up about 80% of the state’s total exports. As of August this year, figures released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) showed that Penang recorded the highest trade amounting to RM69.2 billion.
At the same time, Penang is also the main exporter contributing about 29.9% with total exports reaching RM42.3 billion.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Penang’s 50-year industrialisation journey is undeniably a significant milestone. It would not have been possible without the contributions of all industry players and stakeholders along this journey. Holding on the 50th anniversary celebration tagline, ‘50 Years of Excellence and Beyond’, we will strive to uphold our conducive ecosystem capable of stimulating the advancement of strategic industries for the next 50 years. To realise this aspiration, aside from constantly seizing the opportunities arising from global development, the state also places huge emphasis on the sustainability agenda. Penang is proud to be home to a diverse range of industry players, demonstrating our exemplary Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices and corporate citizenship.
On a similar note, I wish to also share that in parallel to the rapid growth of Penang’s industrial ecosystem, the state’s various STEM initiatives are aimed towards building healthy talent pipeline to meet the industry demand. In particular, I ask for more industry support and partnership for our STEM initiatives to help cultivate industry-ready talent pool in this fast-paced environment.
The state government remains committed to being the leader, the enabler and the propeller by offering a competent platform for all industry players to scale and thrive.
We will continue to spearhead the development of a sustainable ecosystem, including the physical and digital infrastructure, workforce, environment and liveability of Penang, all of which are believed to set the State on the right trajectory to attracting high-quality investors and making Penang shine in the world map of technology.
Thank you.