Good morning ladies and gentleman and welcome to HSR Seminar 2014.
Honorable State Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Government of Japan, Mr. NISHIMURA, and distinguished guests and ladies and gentlemen, good morning to all of you.
I am delighted to welcome the seminar delegates companies and members of the Rail Trade fraternities, who have gathered here in Kuala Lumpur.
Some of you have traveled from afar to be here today and this bodies well for your confidence in the Malaysian economy and what we here in Malaysia have to offer.
May I take this opportunity to thank the organizer for choosing Malaysia as the venue for the event.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Railway and other infrastructure projects are a key element in the growth of Malaysia’s economy. A number of projects have already received full government backing and funding and we at SPAD are committed to developing and implementing a world class transportation system, both here in Kuala Lumpur and throughout the rest of Malaysia.
The government has embarked into many rail projects amongst other is The Klang Valley MRT, which will be Malaysia’s largest ever infrastructure project. This will provide 3 new MRT lines, with up to 150km of track and more than 90 new stations. The electrification and upgrading of the West Coast is ongoing and there are now plans for a four stage East Coast mainline.
On the higher scale, the Prime Ministers of Malaysia and Singapore recently announced a high speed link between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, which will cut rail travel time between these two major economic centers to just 90 minutes.
These developments illustrate Malaysia’s commitment to continued expansion in the railway industry and demonstrate that now is a good time to be in railways and in Malaysia.
Ladies and gentlemen,
When we relate economy with Land Public Transport Commission (S.P.A.D), I cannot emphasize enough the importance, effectiveness and efficiency of the transport and storage sector. It contributes significantly to the country’s economy. This is 3.2% of the country’s GDP. As we aim for a GDP growth of 8% per annum, so we must make sure that the transport and logistics sector also grows accordingly. After all one of the mandates of S.P.A.D. is to increase the efficiency of the freight transport and logistics industry in Malaysia.
Ladies & Gentlemen,
Malaysia has a critical economic agenda and must stick to strict timelines if it is to achieve its goal of becoming a developed nation by the year 2020. S.P.A.D plays a critical and pivotal role in ensuring Malaysia meets its targets for Vision 2020 as public transport has been identified as a key driver for growth, and considered a prerequisite for the progress of Malaysia’s economic transformation.
In order to do all this, we are guided by, amongst others, the National Land Public Transport Masterplan.
This Masterplan aims to make public transport the people’s mode of choice via the transformation of the Malaysian public transport system. It aspires to increase mobility, create liveable cities and support economic growth and transformation. Our target is to have 40% modal share for public transport in the urban areas by the year 2030 and increased public transport connectivity in the rural areas.
Ladies and gentlemen,
There is much we can learn from one another and SPAD is committed to provide the means and environment in order to achieve this. Seminars such as these provide the platform to increase and improve professional standards with the ultimate end goal being to improve land public transport services and facilities in Malaysia.
I would like to express my appreciation and gratitude to Honorable State Minister Mr. NISHIMURA and other delegates and I would like to convey my best wishes to everyone involved in this seminar for its success.
Thank you.
Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur
4th November 2014
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