Welcome Message
WELCOME MESSAGE
Assalamualaikum, selamat datang, salam Sarawak Maju Makmur and welcome to the Sarawak Premier’s Office website.
Praise and thanks be to Allah SWT for only by His grace and providence that I am able to helm Sarawak as its sixth Premier (previously Chief Minister) for the past six years since 13th January, 2017.
I am humbled by the resounding mandate given by the people of Sarawak to the GPS Government under my leadership in the 12th State Elections in 2021 where GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) won 76 out of the 82 seats up for contest.
Sarawak aspires to be a developed and high-income state by 2030. This entails doubling the size of Sarawak’s economy from RM136 billion in 2019 to RM282 billion in 2030 with a targeted annual growth of between six to eight percent as outlined in the Sarawak’s Post COVID-19 Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS 2030).
Already, recently, in just six years after I came into office, Sarawak has been categorised as a high-income state by the World Bank, seven years earlier than targeted with a gross national income (GNI) per capita of more than USD13, 205 (RM61,442) in 2022.
Through the “revenue reengineering” initiative, particularly with the introduction of the Sarawak Sales Tax (SST) since 2019 on petroleum and other products for export Sarawak has been able to increase its revenue by one-fold in just four years from the usual RM4 to RM5 billion annually to a record RM12 billion in 2022.
Sarawak’s trade also saw a remarkable increase as its total trade soared to a 10-year high in 2022 to a record performance of RM217.2 billion representing an impressive growth of 44 per cent.
As Sarawak’s economy continues to be strengthened our next agenda is to distribute the wealth of the State among our people in order to increase household income and thus eradicating poverty, in rural areas in particular.
The thrust of my administration as Sarawak’s chief executive is to ensure that the State is able to embark on a full-pledged transformation capitalising on mega-trends around the world primarily globalisation, supply chain resilience, digitalisation, Industrial Revolution 4.0, circular and low-carbon, green economy as spelled out in the State’s PCDS 2030.
Sarawak is well-positioned to be a notable regional, if not a world proponent of a of a green economy to further the cause of sustainability and the path towards decarbonisation in the fight against climate change as ratified by signatory countries of the Paris Accord and in keeping with the ESG principles.
As a strong proponent of sustainable development and actions against climate change, Sarawak is now at the forefront of the pursuit towards a green economy and net-zero emission by 2050. I have been invited to share Sarawak’s experience at international and regional forums including in Europe, Singapore and Japan in the efforts towards decarbonisation, the energy transition and developing a green economy.
Sarawak has emerged as a regional leader in the development of a hydrogen as an emission-free fuel, development of renewable and sustainable energy-sources, Carbon Storage Utilisation (CCUS), carbon trading and research in the development of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) from algae biomass.
I wish to reassure the people of Sarawak that my colleagues and I in the State Government will uphold their trust that they had placed on the GPS Government to transform Sarawak into a developed and high-income State by 2030, Insyallah.
To conclude, let me wish all Sarawakians a happy 60th Sarawak Merdeka Day as we celebrate our 60 years of independence from the British who handed over the state’s administration to the people of Sarawak on 22nd July, 1963.
Thank you.THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
DATUK PATINGGI TAN SRI (DR) ABANG HAJI ABDUL RAHMAN ZOHARI BIN TUN DATUK ABANG HAJI OPENG
PREMIER OF SARAWAK