KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 19 (Bernama) -- Agriculture and tourism will be the key drivers of economic growth under a master plan designated for the East Coast Economic Region (ECER) which Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi will unveil next month.
Petronas president and chief executive officer Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican said several key strategies and initiatives had been mapped out for both the two sectors under the 12-year plan covering the states of Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Mersing district in Johor.
Speaking at an editors' briefing on the ECER here yesterday, he said that for the agricultural sector, poverty eradication would be one of the areas of focus, given that the ECER states have among the lowest average household incomes in Malaysia.
Terengganu and Kelantan have the highest incidence of poverty in Malaysia, accounting for 15.4 per cent and 10.6 per cent of poverty in the country respectively, followed by Pahang at 4.9 per cent. Under the ECER master plan, a total of 561,000 jobs will be created by 2020 and hardcore poverty will be cut to zero.
Petronas is the master planner for the economic region, which comprises 66,736 sq km of land or 51 per cent of peninsular Malaysia. The ECER will be launched by the prime minister in Kuala Terengganu and Kota Baharu on Oct 30 and in Kuantan on Oct 31.
To make it a success, the development plan will rely on several fundamental strengths that the region possesses. Chief among these will be its rich natural resources, like the vast agricultural land and large reserves of oil and gas.
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