Azlan Othman
Hope for the construction industry in the face of waning local demand may lie in foreign direct investment (FDI), said Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah during yesterday’s 19th Legislative Council (LegCo) session.
LegCo member Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Haji Awang Suyoi bin Haji Osman inquired on what is being done to assist local contractors and consultants who are struggling due to the lack of construction projects.
Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew said if they looked at demand, “there is no big increase in the country’s population”. He said the number of local construction companies have also increased,” adding that because the number of projects are limited, the share for each company would therefore be smaller.
He noted the need to lure in FDIs, so more demand is created and activity in the construction sector and others can be increased.
Meanwhile, Minister of Development Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Muhammad Juanda bin Haji Abdul Rashid in his response said that the focus of the Ministry of Development (MoD) is to maintain, upgrade and renovate existing facilities, which would give projects to local contractors.
There is also the construction of the Universiti Islamic Sultan Sharif Ali campus in the Temburong District, said the minister, noting that however, the construction of new buildings and facilities nowadays is not as much as before.
“Government projects to build infrastructure or buildings is based on needs,” he said.
