KUCHING: Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg said he has agreed to give funds for research into the use of new technologies for building new roads and bridges in the state.
“Sarawak has a lot of resources and that makes us proud. We have hydropower and minerals, and with a stable government we can move forward.
“Sarawak government makes it very clear, if you want to move forward you must provide basic infrastructure for the people in the state.
“This includes digital infrastructure such as high-speed internet, roads, bridges and education that must match the needs of the economy,” he said during the closing of a seminar on road technology and technical manpower in Sarawak at a hotel here yesterday.
Abang Johari also pointed that roads can help to raise the income of the people, especially those in rural areas that have been connected to urban centres.
“We have decided to proceed with our second trunk road and coastal road with an allocation of RM9 billion,” he said.
The Sarawak government has allocated funds for road repairs while building new roads and bridges connecting rural areas and towns to boost socio-economic development of the coastal regions with relatively large populations.
He also stressed that engineers and contractors who maintain roads must look at new technologies as their work is very important.
“Take Singapore as an example; it has been greatly transformed. I believe that we too can transform Sarawak using new technologies that we ourselves discover.
“Roads are very essential for the state’s economy. From agriculture, for example, we can generate revenue to help build more roads which in turn lead to other sources of income for the state,” he said.
Abang Johari also reiterated that tax on exported oil and gas could be used to help improve and build the coastal road network.
Meanwhile, Infrastructure Development and Transportation Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing said the objectives of the seminar is to promote improvement in the methods of building roads and bridges in Sarawak.
Besides that, it also exposures the participants to the latest methods and technologies in road and bridge designs and construction.
More than 482 persons from various agencies including contractors, engineers, exhibitors and others from within the state and outside shared ideas and information on new technologies that could be applied in new construction projects.
Also present at the closing ceremony were Assistant Minister of Coastal Roads Datuk Julaihi Narawi, Transportation Assistant Minister Datuk Dr Jerip Susil, and Public Works Department director Datuk Zuraimi Sabki.
