Introduction

Perak is situated in the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia with an area of 21,000 sq km therefore making it the second largest state in the country. Traditionally, Perak’s main economic activity was mining and it produced the world’s largest supply of tin until the collapse of this particular industry in the 1970s. Due to this, the state government of Perak has diversified its economy and presently the state is involved in the manufacturing, agri-aquaculture, tourism, construction, mining and service industries. Investors should seriously consider investing in Perak as it offers them many benefits and incentives such as one of the lowest rental rates for prime office space in the whole of Malaysia, cheap industrial land and lower standard of living that guarantee them a lower cost of production thus maximizing their profit.

General Information

Perak, located in the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia, is the second largest state with an area of 21,000 sq km. It is also known as the Silver State as the word “perak” means silver in Malay and it was the world’s biggest tin producer until the 1970s.

The state capital of Perak is Ipoh while other major towns include Taiping, Teluk Intan, Sungai Siput, Kuala Kangsar, Kampar, Lumut, Batu Gajah, Bidor, Tapah and Tanjung Malim. Its temperate climate is stable, ranging from 23.7 to 33.2 degrees Celsius throughout the year. As for rainfall, Perak receives a major share of it – over 3,000 millimeters of rain in a year. This particular state is rich with a forest area of 10,713 sq km with most of them tropical and mangrove.

Economy

As the world’s biggest tin producer, Perak used to be one of the wealthiest states in the country until the collapse of the said industry during the global recession of the late 1980s. Due to this, it had no choice but to shift its economic focus and to diversify into other industries especially the manufacturing sector.

Presently, Perak aims to own a modern and diversified economy with participation in the manufacturing, agri-aquaculture, tourism, construction, mining and service industries. As a result, it now exports electrical or electronic products, textiles and clothing, chemicals, industrial machinery, appliances and apparatus, rubber, ceramic, wood, cement and metal products.

An Investor-friendly State

Since the shift in its economy focus, Perak has come a long way to become an investor-friendly state and potential investors, both foreign and local, should seriously consider investing in this state. This is because the state government has put in a lot of efforts to provide Perak with a suitable investment climate through the development of industrial estates, an efficient administrative system, major improvement in infrastructure, the provision of commercial facilities and other amenities.

1. Accessibility

Perak is now easily accessible from the rest of the country by a well-established network of roads and highways. The oldest of these would be the North-South trunk road that runs through the state and linking it with most of the major towns in Peninsular Malaysia. More up-to-date would be the North-South Highway that connects Perak to the seaports of Penang in the north, Klang in the south and Lumut in the south-west. In addition to this is the East-West Highway that shortens the traveling time between Ipoh and the East Coast by nearly 1,000 km. And finally the most recent projects involve the RM1 billion 200 km double-track electrified railway from Rawang to Ipoh and the RM1 billion Ipoh-Lumut Highway.

2. Low Cost of Industrial Land and Standard of Living

The land in Perak is considerably cheap compared to other states and there is plenty of industrial land. This is because half of Perak is still covered with forests and undeveloped yet, therefore as far as land is concerned, the supply is always more than the demand. Please refer to Appendix I at the end of this article and one will note that Perak has one of the lowest rental rates for prime office space in the whole of Malaysia. Perak also offers one of the lowest costs of industrial land and factory building or ready-built factories available thus ensuring that the standard of living is also low - another positive attribute that this particular state possesses.

3. Plenty of Educated and Skilled Manpower

As for educated and skilled manpower, Perak will have no problem supplying them as various institutions of higher learning are located here such as Universiti Teknologi Petronas, The Workers Institute of Technology (an engineering college and a technical centre for human resource development), Perak College of Medicine (a wholly owned subsidiary of the state government that operates a twinning medical degree program with the University of Sheffield of the United Kingdom) and Politeknik Ungku Omar (a technical college). Also with the recent opening of Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Perak is fast becoming a choice location for the pursuit of higher learning therefore guaranteeing a steady supply of workers with the right qualities.

4. Attractive Incentives for Investors

The gradual transformation of Perak into a potential investment destination would not have been possible without the direct involvement of the state government through its statutory body known as the Perak State Development Corporation or PSDC. Potential investors are offered the following incentives should they choose to invest in Perak:

5. Improved Infrastructure for Investment Purposes

The following improved infrastructure has been undertaken by the PSDC for attracting investors:

Tourism

Tourism is another industry that potential investors can consider investing in. This is because Perak has many natural, cultural and historical attractions complemented by modern tourist facilities such as established hotels, hill and island resorts. Among some of the famous tourist destinations are Sam Poh Tong, Gua Tempurung, Kellie’s Castle, Ubudiah Mosque, the Royal Museum and Taiping Zoo.

As a tourist destination, Ipoh, the state capital of Perak is only 205 km from Kuala Lumpur and 165 km from Penang by road. Ipoh can also be reached by daily domestic flights from the Sultan Azlan Shah Airport operated by Malaysia Airline System (MAS). Other means of traveling to and fro Ipoh include the express trains that ply along the Kuala Lumpur-Ipoh-Butterworth route and express bus services that are concentrated in Medan Kidd located in the town centre. Taxis are also freely available and can be another viable choice for travel.

Agriculture

It was discovered that a total of 116,300 hectares of ex-mining land, 3,100 hectares of non-paddy land, 10,600 hectares of cultivated paddy land and 100,200 hectares of bushes are found to be suitable for agricultural activities. The following agro-based industries are found to show great promise:

Government and Perak State Government Agencies :

For additional information on the investment prospect in Perak, potential investors are advised to contact the following government and state government agencies:

* Perak State Government Development Corporation
Bangunan Perak Darul Ridzuan
Jalan Panglima, Bukit Gantang Wahab,
Wahab, 30000 Ipoh.
Tel: 05 - 253 1957
Fax: 05 - 241 8173

* Perak State Development Corporation
Wisma Wan Mohamed
Jalan Panglima, Bukit Gantang,
30000 Ipoh.
Tel: 05 - 529 6600
Fax: 05 - 529 6600

* Malaysian International Development Authority (MIDA)
2^nd Floor, Wisma Wan Mohamed,
Jalan Panglima,
Bukit Gantang Wahab,
30000 Ipoh. Tel. : 05-253 9300
Fax : 05-255 2661

* Ministry of International Trade & Industry (MITI)
4^th Floor, Wisma Wan Mohamed,
Jalan Panglima,
Bukit Gantang Wahab,
30000 Ipoh.
Tel. : 05-241 7751
Fax : 05-241 7754

APPENDIX