Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia Begin Talks on Trilateral Cooperation for JS-SEZ

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 13 (Bernama) -- Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia have begun discussions on the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) trilateral cooperation, said Malaysian Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz.

He said that during a meeting with Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry, Gan Kim Yong, and Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, at the 47th ASEAN Summit, the parties agreed to explore the matter in greater detail and commence formal discussions.

“We are waiting for the senior officials to look at the opportunity and discuss it officially. It has been discussed before, but it has never been followed through.

“We've never done an in-depth study (on the matter) and we need to look into it in greater detail,” he told a press conference on the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry's (MITI) report card for the third quarter of 2025.  

On Oct 24, Gan said Singapore is exploring a tripartite collaboration with Malaysia and Indonesia to attract investors and businesses to the JS-SEZ, as well as Batam, Bintan and Karimun (BBK) Islands.

The JS-SEZ is a collaborative initiative between Malaysia and Singapore to boost cross-border economic growth, while the BBK is a special economic region in Indonesia, where Singapore is a major investor.

The JS-SEZ covers major development zones such as Iskandar Malaysia, Forest City, the Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex and Desaru, with a total land area spanning approximately 357,128 hectares.

The Iskandar Malaysia region also includes strategic areas such as Johor Bahru City Centre, Iskandar Puteri, Tanjung Pelepas–Tanjung Bin, Pasir Gudang, Senai–Skudai, and Sedenak.

Known as flagship zones, each area will champion projects from different vital sectors of the economy.

-- BERNAMA