50th Anniversary of Malaysia-Republic of Korea diplomatic relations
-With the attendance of Minister Mohamed of International Trade-Industry of Malaysia-
A high-powered Malaysian Trade and Investment Mission led by The Honorable Minister of International Trade & Industry Dato' Sri Mustapa Mohamed joined the Seminar on Business Opportunities in Malaysia 2010 which was held at Hotel Lotte in downtown Seoul on July 21, 2010.
In his keynote speech delivered at the seminar attended by more than 300-plus local businessmen and media representatives, Minister Dato' Sri Mustapa Mohamed said that the event will certainly further enhance the bilateral relations between Malaysia and Korea reiterating Malaysia's commitment to maintaining a stable and business-friendly government. "In this regard, I look forward to seeing more Korean companies, both large and small, do business in Malaysia," he said.
The seminar was organized by ASEAN-Korea Centre in coordination with the Malaysian Investment Development Authorities (MIDA), a Malaysian government's principal agency for the promotion of the manufacturing and services sectors in Malaysia. MIDA assists companies which intend to invest in the manufacturing and services sectors, as well as facilitates the implementation of their projects.
The Seoul seminar, which will be followed by another one scheduled for July 23 in southern port city of Busan, was aimed at providing members of the Korean business community here with the latest updates on government policies, incentives, facilities and support services available to foreign investors.
Among other members of the Malaysian delegation present were Director-general Datuk Jalilah Baba and Senior Director Phang Ah Tong for investment at MIDA.
The first day of the seminar held at Lotte Hotel attracted more than 300 participants, not to mention three dozens of local media representatives reflecting a growing popularity of Malaysia as offshore investment destinations for Korean businesses in recent years.
Korean participants had an excellent opportunity to network with Malaysian businesses as well as government agencies both on the federal and state levels on exchanging ideas and investment opportunities in Malaysia.
Potential Korean investors from such areas as electronics, biotechnology, machinery, and engineering supporting industries, automotive parts, food & beverages, green technology and ICT had face to face business talks with the visiting members of the Malaysian trade and investment mission after the morning session, during which investment climate and various incentive measures including one-stop service for foreign investors and tax holidays were introduced by Minister Dato' Sri Mustapa Mohamed. In the case of Busan city on July 23, representatives from precision machinery, advance electronics, metal & steel, ICT, biotechnology, marine related activities and business services sectors will be invited to face-to-face business consultations.
Against the backdrop of Seoul event, in the meantime, DTC Group Sdn Bhd, which focuses on developing green technology, will join hands with four leading Korean companies to set up a RM150 million lighting technology manufacturing plant in Malaysia.
Executive Director TC Ooi said the investment in the plant, which would manufacture induction lighting systems, an alternative green technology suitable for industrial use, would be spread out over the next three years.
DTC recently signed a memorandum of understanding with a consortium of four South Korean companies, Creative System Co Ltd, Gwang Yeok Jeongi, Kolamp and Fajin Eng Ltd, to introduce the lighting technology, an electrode-less fluorescent system.
Ooi said the companies were technology leaders and patent owners of various components in the induction lighting system, namely the ballast, fixture, bulb, control and monitoring system.
"We are targeting at an order of 50,000 units annually within the next three years in Malaysia and 100,000 units to cater to the export market in five years," he said in a statement on July 21.
Ooi said the introduction was timely to spearhead the government's initiative to stop all production and sale of the traditional incandescent lighting system by 2014 and reduce carbon emission collectively.
Korea has long been an important trading partner of Malaysia and there is still considerable scope for increasing the volume of two-way trade between our countries and to improve the composition of bilateral trade to reflect the strengths of the two economies and to incorporate a wider range of goods and services.
According to statistics related with foreign investment in implemented manufacturing projects by major countries at the end of 2009, Korea ranked seventh with number of projects totaling 287 with US$2.6billion.
Malaysia already has strong credentials as an authority for the certification of halal food and non-food products. Malaysia's certification for halal food products complies with both the requirements of the Muslim community as well as international health and safety standards. The Korean business community can look at sourcing halal products from Malaysia for third markets in Europe and other regions.
Malaysia and Korean can leverage on each other's strengths by working together particularly in the Middle East and African continent, in areas such as trading, manufacturing and services. Malaysia's business community is versatile in doing business in various parts of the world as the country has trading links with more than 100 other countries.
Korean businessmen should also consider Malaysia as a strategic business partner within the larger ASEAN market of half a billion consumers as well as location to other high growth countries in Asia. Malaysia is also strategically well-positioned to serve as a gateway to the other countries in the region.
As a measure to further diversify the economy, the Malaysian Government has identified the services sector as a new source of growth. This is in line with the Government's objective of developing Malaysia into the preferred service hub in the region.
In line with its effort to become a knowledge-based economy, the Malaysian Government has given priority to the ICT industry. The Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) is a key component of the strategy to develop this sector.
The MSC offers a conducive environment for ICT companies to expand their businesses, undertake research, develop new products and technologies, and export their products. As a regional technological hub, the MSC also serves as a springboard to markets in ASEAN and the Middle East.
Korean companies are encouraged to take advantage of the MSC as a regional location for centralized ICT operations, including R&D, contact centres, technical support centres and data centres.
Malaysia offers good value for money and is among one of the most affordable places in Asia for tourism, meetings, incentives, conventions, exhibitions (MICE) and shopping. It is also well known for sports events such as Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix Formula One and eco-tourism with its jungle trekking, diving sites and bird sanctuaries. The weather is sunny throughout the year.
The Malaysian Government has initiated the "Malaysia My Second Home" programme that welcomes foreigners to stay in Malaysia. The programme is open to all foreign nationals who can stay in Malaysia on a social visit pass with multiple entries visa. The social visit pass is given initially for a period of 5 years and is renewable. Malaysia welcomes the French people to holiday or stay under Malaysia My Second Home' programme. As of now, more than 500 Koreans have applied for MM2H program.
Malaysia is also emerging as one of the popular destination for medical tourism.
More recently, Malaysia woos foreign investors to make inroad to Malaysian healthcare industries with huge market potentials.