Thailand
SEZ to transform Brunei into world-class economic hub
A SIGNIFICANT Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed last month to set up a strategic public-private partnership (PPP) for the development of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Brunei Darussalam.
The MoU was signed between CFLD (Singapore) Investment Pte Ltd, the government of Brunei Darussalam and Darussalam Assets Sdn Bhd (DA) in a signing ceremony that took place at the Empire Hotel and Country Club on May 3.
Under the MoU, the parties will jointly co-invest and develop a Special Economic Zone – an area spanning approximately 40-square kilometres in the Jerudong waterfront and Tungku region to be developed under CFLD (Chine Fortune Land Development International)’s flagship new industry city model.
Dato Paduka Awang Haji Mohamad Roselan bin Haji Mohamad Daud, the Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office signed as a representative of the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Downstream Industry Steering Committee, and Jerry Zhao, the President and CEO of CFLD International signed for CFLD, while signing for DA was Dato Paduka Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah, Deputy Minister of Finance and Deputy Chairman and CEO of DA.
Witnessing the signing was Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Abdul Rahman bin Haji Ibrahim, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance II as the guest of honour. Larry Wang, the Vice President of Strategy and Research at CFLD also witnessed the signing.
According to a press release, the Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance II said, “The strategic partnership between the Brunei government, DA and CFLD is an innovative public-private partnership designed to stimulate and promote the successful growth of a knowledge-based economy and precipitate the successful economic transformation of Brunei Darussalam into a world-class economic hub whilst maintaining its cultural and social integrity and promoting its traditional values of friendship, compassion and social harmony.
“This will provide a substantive contribution to Brunei Darussalam’s diversification plan for the development of the service sector, tourism, industries and would seek to reduce the country’s dependence on the oil and gas sector; whilst building the potential to attract foreign direct investment and generate strategic economic development, thus having an impact on citizens and residents of Brunei Darussalam through the generation of employment and business opportunities for local entrepreneurs and traders.”
Darussalam Assets Sdn Bhd is a private limited company owned by the Minister for Finance Corporation. It was established in 2012 to own government-linked companies, and to transform the companies into world-class organisations, as well as to take the lead in managing investment activities on behalf of the Minister for Finance Corporation and the Brunei government in order to achieve development and economic diversification.
Dato Paduka Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah in a speech at the event expressed his thanks to the FDI and Downstream Industry Steering Committee for their leadership and guidance in the project, and also commended CFLD for their show of commitment to pursue this project.
He said that the MoU paves the way for greater collaboration between CFLD International and Brunei Darussalam. “The involvement of Brunei government and Darussalam Assets in this strategic partnership shows our confidence in CFLD’s abilities to harness public-private partnerships in developing successful New Industry Cities geared towards socio-economic development locally.”
He noted that CFLD International is a publicly traded real estate international developer and leading industry city operator, with presence in more than 30 cities in China, Middle East, Asia, the US and Europe. Similar Public Private Partnership models have been adopted by CFLD in developing these successful new industry cities where they work with local governments to boost the economic and social development of the country, he shared.
“This MoU leverages on these core competencies of CFLD, which will have an impact on citizens and residents of Brunei Darussalam through job creation, community development and business opportunities.
“On the ground, this idea will bring forth enhancement to our Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sector to be part of the whole ecosystem of the Special Economic Zone by providing services and products, benefiting sectors such as retail, tourism, healthcare, education, F&B, IT, real estate, construction and others.
“We also expect this development to create other new economic activities and promote product innovation, thereby further expanding the ecosystem, that will ensure its commercial significance and social economic benefits,” he continued. “This initiative will therefore play a part in paving the way for Brunei Darussalam to achieve greater economic growth towards realising the various goals under Wawasan Brunei 2035.”
A global leader in providing integrated and innovative urban solutions, CFLD International specialises in master planning and infrastructure development.
CFLD International’s President and CEO Jerry Zhao said, “As a leading international developer of innovative urban solutions and private-public model collaborations, CFLD International’s objectives of being a trusted advisor to governments and partnering in the creation and development of new industry cities and the fostering and development of tomorrow’s industries and social value creation, are in line with the Brunei Government’s vision of transforming the nation into an international economic hub.
“We are delighted to be partnering with the Brunei government and DA, and to be an active participant in Brunei Darussalam’s future development,” he shared.
“This MoU speaks volumes about our commitment to Brunei Darussalam, which is one of our key growth markets in the region. We look forward to contributing to Brunei Darussalam’s economy and its people.”
Source: http://borneobulletin.com.bn/sez-transform-brunei-world-class-economic-hub/#attachment wp-att-20308911/0/