Bioeconomy is expected to contribute RM4 billion to the Pahang state economy in 2020

Kuala Lumpur, November 15, 2013 ~ Pahang’s Gross Domestic Products (GDP) by year 2020 is projected to be about RM45 billion, of which Bioeconomy is expected to contribute about RM4 billion according to an estimate by Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation (BiotechCorp) in a paper entitled “The Pahang Biotechnology Industry – Achievements, Direction and Strategies” presented at the Biotechnology Investment Convention 2013, held in Kuantan, yesterday.

The one day convention targets to attract industry players to look at investment opportunities in Pahang and also strengthen the cooperation between the state government and the private sector.

“This drive for boosting investments in the state’s biotechnology industry is very timely as it can provide lucrative returns in many ways,” said Razwin Sulairee, Chief Operating Officer of BiotechCorp who presented the paper at the convention.

By virtue of having one of the most diverse ecosystems in the region, Pahang has the ability to capitalize on its’ strengths in bio industrial activities, aquaculture and intensive agro activities among others. The investment potential from bioeconomy for Pahang can reach up to RM5 billion within the next 5 years.

Although the potential for generating income is great for the state but there are many challenges that needs to be overcome before the rewards can be reaped.

According to Razwin, there are several challenges that must be overcome by the state in order to realize its true potential; aggregation of biomass, infrastructure and financing for biobased projects.

Among the initiatives proposed is for Pahang to develop and capitalize on current economic clusters in biochemical and automotive as an example, and combine the strength and expertise of local institutions of higher learning and the private sectors to develop new and innovative products that have high commercial values.

“We feel that Pahang has a great opportunity to generate income through bioeconomy and we are looking forward to working with the state government to raise the income potential of our farmers and also bring our nation closer to achieving its goal to be a fully developed,high income nation by 2020,” said Razwin.