By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, April 29: Sarawak aims to be the second highest contributor to Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) before the next State election, says Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg.
According to a post today on the Premier’s official Facebook page, ‘Sarawakku’, Abang Johari reiterated that Sarawak is currently the third biggest GDP contributor to the national GDP, after overtaking Johor and only behind Selangor and Kuala Lumpur.
He made the remarks during his speech before officiating at Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu’s (PBB) Hari Raya Ramah Tamah event last night (April 28) at a hotel here.
According to a Department of Statistics 2021 report, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, and Sarawak were the top three regions, contributing 60.8 per cent of the national GDP.
Selangor led with a 25.1 per cent share, totaling RM314.4 billion (2020: RM291.9 billion). This was followed by Kuala Lumpur at 23.9 per cent, or RM299.8 billion (2020: RM304.0 billion) and Sarawak at 11.8 per cent, or RM147.9 billion (2020: RM107.5 billion), according to the report.
Apurva Sanghi, the World Bank’s Chief Economist, also tweeted in social messaging platform X that the three top contributors to Malaysia’s GDP are Selangor (25.54 per cent), Kuala Lumpur (16.25 per cent), and Sarawak (9.75 per cent), with Johor coming in fourth (9.74 per cent).
“We have to be confident and organise our strategy so that our GDP is high and I am confident that we will be able to overtake Selangor.
“Whether we can achieve it or not, it is up to us to organise our economic strategy and this is what we are aiming for before the next State election,” Abang Johari was quoted as saying.
The Premier explained that such efforts to organise the economy are made to demonstrate to Sarawakians that the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government’s leadership is on the right track in developing Sarawak.
Abang Johari, who is also PBB president, stated that the party is optimistic about grooming young leaders to carry on the legacy of developing Sarawak in the future.
“We have to train the next echelon of leaders to produce strong and relevant leaders in the future who do not face problems such as money politics and so on.
“But so far, we have been able to manage our party well and provide space to the young people to lead in the future.
“The situation is always changing, the political landscape will also change with the economic sector being managed in a new way,” he emphasised.
The event was attended by various dignitaries and officials, including PBB deputy president and Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas; PBB senior vice president and Deputy Prime Minister Dato Sri Fadillah Yusof; and PBB permanent chairman and Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) Speaker Tan Sri Datuk Amar Mohamad Asfia Awang Nassar. — DayakDaily
