Dr Sim (fifth right) shakes hands with Teo over the scale model of the proposed Kenyalang Smart City while others look on. – Photo by Lo Kiun Sin
MIRI (May 29): Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg is welcoming developers and architects to replicate the design of the proposed Kenyalang Smart City in other parts of the state.
He said he was impressed by the smart city’s sustainable development model, green architecture designs, integration of clean energy clusters and innovation parks, inclusion of educational and medical facilities and its focus on community for Miri City.
“I also believe these qualities can be replicated in many parts of Sarawak. I invite all of you to explore these opportunities.
“The Kenyalang Smart City is foundational to the future we want to shape in Sarawak as a developed and high-income region in Malaysia, and therefore, I pray that it will be successfully implemented,” he said.
Abang Johari’s speech was read by Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian when officiating at the Kenyalang Smart City Summit here today.
The Kenyalang Smart City is a development master plan by architecture firm TAK, founded by homegrown Miri architect Teo Ah Khing, on behalf of developer Imasa Dinasti Sdn Bhd, aimed at impacting communities not only in and around Miri City but further afield, with the impact set to be carried out over generations, he added.
On that note, he believed that Bintulu and Miri is poised to undergo economic boom again in the years towards 2030 and thereafter towards 2050 as the various renewable energy projects are set to mature as Sarawak has become a magnet for international investors in green and renewable energy.
Green concept Kenyalang Smart City is an integrated smart city development adjacent to Curtin University Malaysia campus, set across 543 acres and its five segments will be developed over 15 to 20 years to spur economic development of city suburbs and beyond in northern Sarawak, said Abang Johari.
He said a city’s development needs proper planning to create the right ambience for modern living and it has evolved from merely building shop houses and residential areas to one that is smart, integrated and sustainable in concept.
This, he pointed out, is highlighted in Kenyalang Smart City where various elements are put together including a China top-rank university and a convention centre, the brainchild of Sarawak-born architect Teo Ah King.
The summit was attended by state cabinet members and government officials as well as local and international investors from the Middle East and Asia, including the Republic of China, Australia, Singapore and Indonesia.
The summit also saw the signing of eight Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) between Imasa Dinasti Sdn Bhd and Fudan Institutes of Integrative Medicine, China Broadnet, CIFH, Sinahydro Bureau 12, China Construction Development (Malaysia), Envision Energy Group, ESG Malaysia, and GreenRE.
The MoU with Fudan Institutes of Integrative Medicine is to establish the South East Asia branch of Fudan University’s Institutes of Integrative Medicine in the Kenyalang Smart City.
With China Investment Financial Holdings, the MoU covers the potential establishment of commercial opportunities in energy, healthcare, entertainment, artificial intelligence (AI), intelligent ports, high speed rail and other technologies.
With China Broadnet, it will cover the smart city’s components including but not limited to smart infrastructure, communications, smart construction sites and others while the MoU with ESG Malaysia will be on realising the best sustainability practices within the Kenyalang Smart City.
