KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysia-Singapore joint ministerial committee (JMC) for Iskandar Malaysia, which had its seventh working meeting in Nusajaya, Johor recently, has reported concrete progress in several areas of bilateral cooperation.
For example, cross-border traffic at the Second Link has increased with the reduction in toll charges since Aug 1 this year, while the number of new Malaysia Automated Clearance System users has also risen to more than 30,000 in the first 10 months of 2010.
A statement released by the Public Private Partnership Unit (UKAS) of the Prime Minister's Department on Saturday said the meeting, held on Dec 1, was co-chaired by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop, and Singapore's National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.
Also present were Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman and Singapore's Transport Minister Raymond Lim as well as Malaysia's Transport Minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha and senior officials from both countries.
Meanwhile, at their retreat in May this year, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak and his counterpart Lee Hsien Loong had agreed to jointly develop a rapid transit system (RTS) link between Singapore and Iskandar Malaysia.
The statement said the JMC discussed and agreed to carry out a joint engineering study to determine the technical parameters for the RTS link to achieve a convenient and cost-effective system that was well-integrated with transport services on both sides.
Both sides agreed to set up a co-located Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) facility in Singapore and another in Johor so that commuters need to clear immigration only once for each way of travel.
The statement said both prime ministers also agreed in May that Khazanah Nasional Bhd and Temasek Holdings (Pte) Ltd would form a 50:50 joint-venture company to undertake the development of the iconic wellness township project in Iskandar Malaysia.
The JMC noted that both investment corporations have made several site visits to Iskandar Malaysia and were actively discussing and working out a commercially viable proposal for the township with a view to launching it in May next year.
A new framework for cross-border sharing of information on lost and stolen passports has also been put in place to enhance border security.
The statement said officials from both sides had continued to collaborate on tourism promotion and development and river cleaning, and would further share experiences in other environmental issues such as air-quality management.
The JMC will meet again in the first quarter of 2011 to review the progress of the joint work groups.
- Bernama
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