On April 22, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, announced plans to build the largest semiconductor design park in Southeast Asia. The focus is to promote semiconductor design, prototyping, and manufacturing in Malaysia to strengthen the country's position in the global chip industry.
In this effort, the government will offer incentives such as tax exemptions, subsidies, and visa fee waivers to attract technology companies and global investors. According to German technology company Bosch, Malaysia has been a leader in the semiconductor industry for several decades, contributing about 13 percent of global production.
The Malaysia Semiconductor Acceleration Park and IC Design Park will be established in Puchong, Selangor. The initial area of 45,000 square meters will be expanded to 60,000 square meters.
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Anwar Ibrahim revealed that the development plan for the IC Design Park is part of Malaysia's initiative to enhance advanced design activities and move away from circuit assembly and testing. This project will be supported by local governments in Malaysia, particularly Selangor, and will attract world-class tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm Holdings of the United Kingdom.
As part of Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund, Khazanah Nasional will set up a 1 billion ringgit fund to invest in innovative Malaysian companies with high growth potential. This was announced by Anwar during the KL20 Summit to support Malaysian start-ups.
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Meanwhile, Minister of Economic Affairs Rafizi Ramli said that the government will offer incentives such as subsidized office space, work visa exemptions, relocation services, and low corporate tax rates to foreign venture capital firms, technology entrepreneurs, and unicorn companies interested in investing in Malaysia.
The project is a significant step for Malaysia, which is known as a chip manufacturing hub, particularly in the northern island of Penang, often referred to as the country's Silicon Valley.
Tensions between Washington and Beijing over technology, particularly semiconductors, have led several companies to shift production from China to other countries such as Malaysia, Vietnam and India. The Malaysian government is actively pursuing investment in the semiconductor industry, with Datuk Seri Anwar emphasizing the importance of seizing past opportunities to develop the sector. He believes that Malaysia needs to restructure to optimize previously missed technology investments.
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