Phoong (left) meeting with Dr. Awang Haji Mohd. Amin Liew.
KOTA KINABALU: State Industrial Development and Entrepreneurship Minister Datuk Phoong Jin Zhe visited Brunei Darussalam recently to establish a solid foundation for cooperation between Sabah and Brunei especially in industrial and business sectors, to drive mutual economic growth.
During the two-day working visit, Phoong and his delegation comprised of his Ministry’s Permanent Secretary Datuk Thomas Logijin and representatives from various agencies, met with various government agencies and business leaders in Brunei.
He also paid a courtesy visit to Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew Abdullah, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy Il cum Chairman of Brunei Economic Development Board, to discuss enhancing bilateral trade relations.
Phoong meeting oversea entrepreneurs and investors during his Brunei working trip
Expressing optimism about the collaborative efforts between Sabah and Brunei, Phoong said the trade cooperation between the two regions has flourished in recent years, with trade between Sabah and Brunei alone growing fourfold in 2022 compared to 2017.
Phoong met local business leaders and had dinner with representatives from the ASEAN Business Advisory Council East upon arrival in Brunei.
Phoong meeting local business leaders and had dinner with representatives from the ASEAN Business Advisory Council East upon arrival in Brunei.
“We aim to introduce Sabah to more enterprises seeking overseas business opportunities, thus facilitating the growth of industries and businesses in Sabah,” he said.
During their visit to Brunei, Phoong and his delegation also met entrepreneurs from Nanning, China.
Phoong meeting local business leaders and had dinner with representatives from the ASEAN Business Advisory Council East upon arrival in Brunei.
He disclosed that during the BETCON23, the ASEAN East Growth Area Trade Exhibition in 2023, the Department of Industrial Development and Research (DIDR) under his Ministry facilitated 12 local companies from Sabah to participate and set up booths at the exhibition.
He emphasised the Government’s commitment to assist local businesses and encouraged Sabah’s enterprises to expand beyond local markets and explore opportunities in Peninsular Malaysia and international markets
