ID :
324868
Wed, 04/16/2014 - 07:19
Auther :

The Proposed 'Friendship Bridge' Augurs Well For Iskandar Malaysia Development

NUSAJAYA (Johor, Malaysia), April 16 (Bernama) -- The proposed 'friendship bridge' between Malaysia and Singapore will augur well for the rapid development of Iskandar Malaysia, the main southern development corridor in Malaysia's southern state, Johor. Khazanah Nasional Bhd Managing Director, Azman Mokhtar, said the momentum of bilateral and commercial relationships underscored and reflected well during the recent meetings between Prime Minister Najib Razak and Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. "I think the proposal is being studied closely on the 'friendship bridge'. "It is within the overall concept on improving connectivity between the two countries in terms of people and goods movements," he told reporters on the sidelines of the Frost & Sullivan's Global Community of Growth, Innovation and Leadership Congress here Tuesday. He said the plan also took into account the rail transport system link and existing linkages of road, ferries and trains and high-speed rail in the future. "The 'friendship bridge' is just the natural consequence towards further improving these linkages," he said. Azman also said the goverment investment arm was looking at the possibility of complementary kind of development between the two countries but it would be done in a sustainable way. "In this regard, I think obviously it is a very good initiative. We (Malaysia and Singapore) need to study and work out on the modality," he said. At the moment, Khazanah is represented in some of the works in various sub-committees and joint ministerial committees of Malaysia and Singapore which include transport joint sub-committee. Earlier, Azman said the growth of Iskandar Malaysia has been quite well for the past five to six years and a moderate approach would be suitable to ensure a sustainable growth in the longer run. He said as the development passed the "first base" phase with a quarter of the planned development been implemented, there was much potential to be tapped in the economic corridor. Azman, one of the speakers at the congress, shared his experiences and strategies that can be implemented by future business leaders. --BERNAMA

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