Sabah

Sabah is a dynamic area for growth, new discoveries and investments. Sabah is one of the five regional development corridors and hosts a number of sectors that fall under the federal government’s National Key Economic Areas, such as oil palm and rubber, among others. Services accounted for 47.4% of the state’s 2012 GDP, followed by agriculture with 20.8%; mining and quarrying, 20.7%; manufacturing, 7.9%; and construction, 2.9%. Tourism is also a growing sector; the state brought in $1.98bn in tourism revenues in 2013, up from $1.72bn in 2012. To encourage further development the government has put a set of tax incentives in place. However, varied terrain and inadequate transportation networks make coordination difficult and hinder development efforts. Bolstering infrastructure and talent is key to moving Sabah forward, and there are plenty of indicators that the state and federal governments are active on these fronts. This chapter contains interviews with Musa Aman, Chief Minister of Sabah; Mohd Yaakub Johari, President and Chief Executive, Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority (SEDIA); Abdul Kadir bin Abdullah, CEO, Sipitang Oil and Gas Industrial Park (SOGIP); Faisyal Hamdain Diego, Chairman, Suria Capital Holdings; Johnson Koh Yong Siang, Executive Director, Waterfront Urban Development; and KP Kuok, Executive Director, Pacific Sanctuary Holdings.