KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 31): In 2006, the government under the then Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi asked Khazanah Nasional Bhd to spearhead the development of a large corridor in southern Johor, with the aim of transforming the region into a metropolis of international standing.

Capitalising on the strengths that Malaysia knows all too-well: ample land, low start-up and operating costs, as well as strategic location within the East-West trade route, the region aims to emulate Shenzhen’s economic transformation in China.

The region, called Iskandar Malaysia, is targeted to reach maturity by 2025, by which some RM383 billion would have been committed by investors and the government. The region is estimated to have a population of 3 million, and a gross domestic product per capita of US$31,100 by then.

With only six years to go before Iskandar Malaysia is deemed as to have reached maturity, how has the region fared?

Nowadays, discussions on Iskandar Malaysia tend to focus on the largest property market overhang in the country, with some RM14.4 billion of properties left unsold in Johor. Meanwhile, some catalytic investments in the region which were targeted to spur high value industries around it, are struggling.

Within the Southern Industrial and Logistics Cluster (SiLC), overgrown grass dominates the landscape of the BioXcell biotechnology park, while Pinewood Studios has decided to call it a day at Iskandar Malaysia Studios.

Is Iskandar Malaysia on track to achieve its dream?

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