KOTA KINABALU: The State Government will continue to carry out the necessary improvements to its delivery system to ensure that all its programs and agendas are implemented efficiently and effectively.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman in his speech at the Investiture ceremony of the State Awards in conjunction with the Head of State’s 61st birthday celebration here yesterday said that in this context all government agencies and departments must continue to perform the best they can in order to increase the competitiveness of the state’s civil service and drive Sabah to greater heights.
“Commitment and efforts to improve the civil service’s achievement especially in financial management and delivery system will continue to be given priority. This is to ensure that the rakyat and investors will continue to have high confidence on the accountability, integrity and skilfulness of the government’s agencies and departments,” he said.
Musa pointed out that Sabah possesses uniqueness in that it is a multi-racial, multi-ethnic and multi-religious state where its people live in peace and harmony.
Sabah, he said, is also blessed with a rich biodiversity as well as flora and fauna that have attracted people from far and wide to visit the state.
“In this context, I would like to stress that the state Government is committed in ensuring that the sustainable natural treasure that we own will continue to be preserved for our wellbeing and prosperity as well as that of our future generation,” he said.
“I, on behalf of the state Government and the people of Sabah would also like to take this opportunity to express our highest appreciation and gratitude to the Federal Government especially to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak for the commitment and continued concern for Sabah which is reflected through the huge allocations granted to the state to ensure continued development for the wellbeing of the people,” he added.
Musa who is also Finance Minister also said that as a responsible and concerned government, the state’s administration will continue to double its efforts as well as commitment to increase the people’s socio-economy.
According to him even though the Government had managed to reduce the poverty level in the state, it will not rest on its laurels. Instead, it will work harder with the federal government to implement more programs that will give Sabahans a better life.
“Other than the Mini Estet Sejahtera (MESEJ), program 1AZAM, Program Peningkatan Ekonomi Setempat (PPES), Projek Agropolitan, Program Bantuan Rumah (PBR) among others, the government will also be implementing the Program Kampung Sejahtera (PKS) which is aimed at transforming identified villages in a holistic manner by involving three main aspects which are human capital development, economical progress and improving quality of life,” he disclosed.
On the matter of increasing the income of the target group in the rural areas through entrepreneurial activities, the Government has implemented the Program Pembangunan Usahawan Desa, Satu Daerah Satu Produk, Promosi as well as entrepreneurship and marketing training programs, he said adding that all these programs will only be successful with the support and involvement of the target group.
The government will therefore intensify its rural transformation programs especially those involving poverty eradication and improving prosperity so that the folks in the rural areas can have a better life.
Touching on the aspect of development Musa said that under the 10th Malaysia Plan, Sabah received an allocation of RM17.7 billion from the federal government and as of September 30 this year, a total of RM12.38 billion or 69.9 per cent of the allocation has been spent on development projects throughout the state.
Of the RM3.823 billion allocated under the state’s allocation for development under the 10th Malaysia Plan, RM2.887 billion or 75.5 per cent has been spent as of September 30, he said.
Musa disclosed that as of August 2014, RM45 billion of the RM135 billion cumulative investment under the Sabah Development Corridor (SDC) has been realized and the investment momentum under SDC is getting more vibrant with the recovery of the United States and European Union’s economies as well as the global investors attention shifting to Asia especially to ASEAN member countries.
A total of RM1.75 billion of the federal government’s allocation for SDC projects under the 9th and 10th Malaysia Plans from 2008 to 2014 has been channeld to the Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority (SEDIA), while the funding given out has reached RM1.46 billion or 83.25 per cent of the total allocation at the end of August this year, he said.
“Implementation of projects under SDC will continue to be intensified because they not only increase income through providing employment opportunities, they also increase the skills and socio-ecomony of the rakyat as a whole,” Musa pointed out.
He also said that Sabah continues to be the focus of investors both foreign and domestic especially in the manufacturing sector and in 2013, Sabah recorded RM2.4 billion domestic investments while foreign investment was at RM1billion.
“As of July this year, we recorded domestic investments worth RM1billion and foreign investments of RM55 million. The situation will improve when several foreign investors finalize their plans to invest in Sabah,” he said.
According to Musa, the state Government is optimistic that the foreign and private investments channelled to the state shows a positive trend and reflects their confidence in the fundamental economy strength, encouragement and investment which are investor friendly, conducive investment climate as well as the political stability and security level of the state.
Speaking about the tourism sector, Musa disclosed that as of July this year, Sabah has recorded a total of 1,889,301 visitors and this is a 2.8 per cent increase from the number of visitors during the same period last year.
Of the 1,889,301 visitors, 1,280,317 were domestic travellers and this was an increase of 5.2 per cent compared to last year, he said.
“However there was a two per cent decrease in the number of foreign tourists. This is a global phenomenon as 2014 is a very challenging year as the result of several incidents and crisis both internally and externally.
“The situation has affected the country and specifically Sabah’s tourism sector and it cannot be denied that the sector will continue to face challenge in the coming months,” he said adding that in view of that, the state Government will continue to promote the state and focus on domestic and regional markets in order to be able to achieve its targeted tourist arrivals of 3.52 million visitors this year.