ISKANDAR Malaysia’s main competitive edge lies in its strategic location. Being the southern gateway into Peninsula Malaysia, it is accessible within an eight-hour flight radius from Asia’s burgeoning growth centres of China, India, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. This puts Iskandar Malaysia within reach of a global market of some 800 million people.
Visions of Iskandar Malaysia
The region is also connect via air, land, rail and sea. Apart from the Senai International airport and Changi Airport, Singapore, there are three major ports within the region: Port of Tanjung Pelepas, Pasir Gudang, Port and Tanjung Langsat Port. Besides location and connectivity, Iskandar Malaysia has ample space for business growth and expansion at competitive prices. Iskandar Malaysia spans 2,217sqkm: three times the size of Singapore with a mix of greenfield and brownfield development.
The development thus far at Iskandar Malaysia has been holistic and far-reaching Safety and security has been improved, there has been an integration of public transport, housing and neighborhood design as well as the building of human capital. ICT development and infrastructure has also been given emphasis as has waste management and tourism.
In a nutshell, the infrastructure in place and in being developed at the moment is in preparation for a city of the future. Iskandar Malaysia is set to become a strong and sustainable metropolis of international standing. To reach this ideal, Iskandar Malaysia is concentrating its efforts on certain sectors through its economic clusters. There are nine economic clusters which are given special focus and offer excellent investment opportunities.
Under the services umbrella focus is given on financial advisory and consulting, creative industries, logistics, tourism, education and healthcare. Under manufacturing, focus will be given to electrical and electronics, petrochemical and oleochemical, food and agro processing. Currently, the manufacturing sector against the service sector is at a ration of 70:30 but to meet the government’s aspirations of moving people up the value chain and to realize the economic indicators, a ratio of 30:70 is set to be achieved.
At the same time the manufacturing sector, which has been the central economic pillar of Iskandar Malaysia, will continue to be reinforced on a ‘natural play’ basis. The diversity of industries offers a long-terms and sustainable investment proposition, along with a ready pool of talented, multilingual workforce. Existing and upcoming infrastructure also boost the competitiveness of Iskandar Malaysia and the region provides attractive and exciting incentive packages for its investors. Political stability is also a very important element for investors, and with the strong support of the federal and state government, it is an ideal situation.
Land Size
GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
Population by 2025
Advantages
Flagship A: Johor Bahru City
As Iskandar develops, this area will continue to be Johor’s Central Business District and the main gateway into and out of Singapore, via the Causeway. The Iskandar authorities have plans to revamp Johor Baru into a cultural and commercial hub to draw tourists.
Flagship B: Nusajaya
Nusajaya, sitting on 9,712ha of land, is where most of Iskandar's "catalyst" projects will be developed. These are the projects expected to drive Iskandar's economic and population growth. The authorities expect half a million people to be living in Nusajaya by 2025.
Flagship C: Western Gate Development
This former fishing village has been turned into one of Malaysia's most important maritime hubs, centring on the Port of Tanjung Pelepas. Its economy will be driven by warehousing and logistics, the petrochemical industry, high-tech manufacturing and food production. Upcoming projects in the area include a power plant, a bunker terminal and an 896ha maritime centre that has attracted up to RM16 billion (S$6.7 billion) of foreign investment.
Flagship D: Eastern Gate Development
This industrial and manufacturing hub is focused on the electronic, chemical and logistics industries. The flagship D area has the largest concentration of palm oil refining industries and downstream activities in the world.
Flagship E: Senai-Skudai
This area covers two small towns in Iskandar Malaysia, namely Senai and Skudai. Skudai is a rapidly expanding suburb of Johor Baru, while Senai is part of the new growth corridor of south-west Johor. Apart from Senai International Airport, this area is also the base for several major multinational electronics manufacturers. With more than 405ha of available land within the vicinity of Senai Airport, the authorities here are hoping to draw investors to set up large-scale commercial and airport-related developments.