Iskandar Investment Berhad (IIB) launched DRZ Iskandar making Iskandar Puteri, Johor the first Drone and Robotic Zone in South East Asia.
In line with the recent launch of the ISKANDAR NEXT initiative on a public-private partnership programme with the Johor state government, DRZ Iskandar intends to build a drone and robotic ecosystem in Iskandar, which would become a growth driver, technology leader and talent.
DRZ Iskandar was jointly launched by Khairy Jamaluddin, Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MOSTI) and Datuk Ir. Hasni Mohammad, the Menteri Besar of Johor via a virtual platform. Also witnessing the official launch are Mohd Izhar Ahmad, the Johor State EXCO of Investment, Entrepreneur, Cooperative and Human Resource together with representatives from DHL, MaGIC and IIB Group of Companies.
We’ve explored the five ways that DRZ Iskandar will be driving the new economy:
Expected Investment and Job Creation
DRZ Iskandar is projected to bring in RM351mil of investment and generate 1,000 high-value jobs by 2025 in drone and robotics.
The Asian drone market is projected to rise from USD8.6 billion in 2020 to USD17.9 billion in 2025 in revenue, according to the 2020 industry report generated by Drone Industry Insight. Malaysia aspires to be the frontrunner in the drone industry.
Local Talent – Human Capital
According to Khairy Jamaluddin, “DRZ Iskandar and NTIS share the same aspirations in our effort to upskill local talents and move them higher up in the technology value chain, thus creating greater socio-economic impact. Through this partnership, NTIS will now be able to connect our local technology companies to bigger industry players and multinational companies such as DHL”.
International Tech Companies to Invest
According to Datuk Hasni, the Digital Johor Corporation, which would be established soon, will play an important role alongside IIB to ensure our digital economy plan is achieved. “I would like to urge IIB and its group of companies together with their esteemed partners to work closely with Digital Johor Corporation and other government agencies to jointly develop the DRZ Iskandar ecosystem,” added Hasni.
New Partnership and Stakeholders
DRZ Iskandar also welcomed new partners and stakeholders into the ecosystem. MaGIC signed an MoU with IIB Ventures, a subsidiary of IIB and with DHL in Iskandar Malaysia.
Medini has been established as a location for DRZ Iskandar based on existing infrastructure and facilities that are continually being developed and updated. The DRZ is suitable for identified activities, including the Drone Test Zone (DTZ) together with the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM). It aims to develop a robust ecosystem where talents for the DroneTech industry are trained and certified.
Tested and Proven
NTIS through MaGIC collaborated with the country’s largest plantation operator, FELDA, to deliver social impact.
Collectively, IIB has created close to 10,000 jobs across five promoted sectors in Iskandar Puteri and made an estimated RM400 millions of total revenue for the government.
