Sabah fastest growing state in Malaysia?

 *Suria Sabah, Kota Kinabalu

It was being prove, over & over again (at least in terms of statistical data) that Sabah is the fastest growing states in Malaysia. According to a report compiled by the Syarikat Perumahan Negara Berhad (SPNB), which has data on all states, Sabah recorded one of the highest growth of  8 per cent during 2009-10.

Well, the data says it all. The news article below will also can give the readers a basic insight on what has Sabah achieve, in terms of economy.

*Picture taken from www.spy.my

*Datuk Agnes Shim

Sabah fastest growing state in Malaysia

28th November, 2011

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah MCA women Chief Datuk Agnes Shim hailed the 2012 State Budget of over RM4 billion saying that it was made possible due to strong revenue from the state coffers this year.

“This government is spending big for the benefit of the people and is consistent with its commitment to the Economic Transformation Programme to turn Sabah into a high income and advanced state by 2020,” she said yesterday.

Agnes, who is also the Federation of Chinese Associations Malaysia (Hua Zong) chairwoman said the budget is supported by an expected revenue of RM3.6 billion which is a conservative estimate as global commodity prices for palm oil and petroleum continue to remain strong.

“Sabah is now the fastest growing state in Malaysia, on par with Selangor and Penang, thanks to Datuk Seri Musa Haii Aman and his government for making the turnaround,” she remarked.
The government is confident revenues will exceed this figure due to higher yields in the palm oil and rubber industries. Tourism is also booming in the state with strong revenues from both the international and domestic sectors.

“Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Haji Aman sees the urgency in develop the state fast and living up to the promises of the Barisan National (BN) government. This big spending forms the theme of the budget ‘Accelerating the State’s Well-being and Prosperity’,” commented Agnes.

This is a well-planned all round budget and the Chief Minister needs a strong government machinery that is up to the task of accelerating development.

In appreciation of the contribution of the civil servants, the government promised a minimum of RM500 as bonus to be paid next month.

“This budget maintains the focus of the State Halatuju development programme where 72 per cent of the budget is for the purpose of developing basic infrastructure and public utilities such as roads, sewage treatment, pipes and ports to name a few,” said Agnes.

The Chief Minister has also pledged a massive RM459 million towards water supply infrastructure to help rural folks get proper supply of clean running water, she stated.
She is confident that the revenue collection will be able to cater for the budget as the Chief Minister had announced the government will not introduce any new tax in 2012, so as not to further burden the people.

Furthermore, she said the Government is mindful of the people’s plight and recognises their growing needs as reflected in the special allocation of RM1 million for members of the State Assembly as well as the provision for ‘sentuhan kasih’, an allocation of RM500,000 for each constituency.

The Chief Minister had instructed all assemblymen to ‘turun padang’ armed with this allocation for the benefit of the people in their constituencies.

“This is in line with the 1 Malaysia concept of ‘People First, Performance Now’,” she said.

“Under Datuk Seri Musa Haji Aman, Sabah has an improved financial track record, it is among the top states in Malaysia that has achieved sound financial management with the certification of a Clean Bill awarded by the Auditor General for 11 years in a row,” said Agnes.
Sabah was awarded the highest “AAA” by RAM Rating Services Berhad and an ISO certification by Moodys International for efficiency and proper state budget management for three consecutive years.

She said Sabah’s financial standing is the best ever due to the following financial achievement that is the result of building up the State Reserves to exceed RM3 billion; State Revenue to exceed RM4 billion; actual surplus amounting to RM730 million; development expenditures at RM1.17 billion; and all debts repaid to the Federal Government.

Sabah’s economy has seen an annual growth of over 5 per cent for the past five successive years, earning the state the tag a ‘miracle economy’, defined internationally as economies with average growth over 5 per cent, she added.

Source : http://www.newsabahtimes.com.my/nstweb/fullstory/54236

*Picture taken from http://www.mca.org.my