ICP Programme Expected To Hit US$16.91 Billion By 2020: Malaysian Treasury Sec-Gen

PUTRAJAYA (Malaysia), Aug 26 (Bernama) -- The Finance Ministry of Malaysia has projected the procurement value through the Offset or Industrial Collaboration Programme (ICP) to reach US$16.91 billion (RM68 billion) by 2020. Treasury Secretary-General Dr Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah said the programme has hit US$4.22 billion (RM17 billion) currently. He said the projected RM68 billion encompassed various ongoing projects and those that would be undertaken in the long term. They include the construction of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high speed rail, Mass Rapid Transit Line 1 dan Line 2 as well as the purchase of helicopters, ships and aircraft for the army. Technology Depository Agency Bhd (TDA) has been tasked to coordinate the programme agreements to reap the benefits for the expansion of high value industries resulting from the government procurement agreements, he said. Irwan Serigar said this to reporters after officiating at the pre-launch of the Global Offset and Countertrade Association (GOCA) Asia Pacific (GOCA APAC) 2017 conference here to Friday. The latest Offset programme implemented by the government is the establishment of the Malaysian Railway Academy (MyRA) in Batu Gajah of Malaysian state Perak, which is able to train over 16,000 students in the rail sector by 2020. "Towards this end, the related ministry must have long-term plans for the benefit of each procurement Offset programme carried out by the government including technology/knowledge transfer such as in aerospace and maritime sectors," he said. On GOCA APAC 2017 which will be held in Kuala Lumpur on March 26-29 next year, he said some 500 participants from the public and private sectors from countries that implemented Offset and Countertrade were expected to attend the conference. "With the organisation of the conference which is being organised for the first time in the Asia Pacific region, we hope we are able to learn new methods in the Offset programme," he said. GOCA which is headquartered in Washington D.C., United States, has organised the biennial conference for countries which implement the Offset and Countertrade programme in the American continent, Europe and West Asia for more than 30 years. "In Malaysia, it is known as ICP and GOCA sees the implementation of ICP in this country as more pragmatic and practical. "It is appropriate to be the benchmark for other countries and this is the factor for Malaysia's selection to host the conference," he said. Countries from Europe, Asia Pacific, America, West Asia and Africa are expected to participate in GOCA APAC 2017 which is organised with the cooperation of GOCA, Finance Ministry and TDA. --BERNAMA