ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION NEEDED TO ACHIEVE VISION 2020

KULIM (Malaysia), May 18 (Bernama) -- The government is confident that its
efforts to transform the nation's economy from manufacturing based to one of
creativity and innovation will bring about resounding success as a result of the
existing close cooperation between it and investors, said Minister and the Prime
Minister's Department Nor Mohamed Yakcop.

He said the government would continue with the close cooperation as the
formula had made Malaysia a leading manufacturing country.

He told this to reporters today after holding a meeting with investors of
the Kulim Technology Park here in the northern Kedah state. Also present were
Economic Planning Unit director-general Sulaiman Mahboob and chairman of the
Northern Corridor Implementation Agency (NCIA),Mohd Annuar Zaini.

Earlier, they were given briefings on the operations of Kulim Technology
Park Corp (KTPC) by its president, Mohamad Sobri Osman at the KTPC Business
Centre and information technology giant Intel by its management.

Nor Mohamed said the government would give additional emphasis on developing
more high-technology parks towards realising the transformation of the nation's
economy to the next level.

He added that a RM14 million allocation was recently approved to build a
police station specifically for the park, upgrade the Kulim Hospital and provide
a fire fighting unit to meet the requests of the investors in it. US$1=RM3.54)
-- BERNAMA