An SEZ with Johor could be a game changer

WHEN the leaders of Singapore and Malaysia met at end-October, a broad agenda appropriately reflected the breadth of ties. Notwithstanding this, or that it was the first leaders’ retreat held with Anwar Ibrahim as Malaysia’s Prime Minister, there is something that deserves special attention and a degree of optimism. This is the proposal for a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) with Johor.

Some may long for a high-speed railway to Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, but that has now been twice derailed. An SEZ with Johor may prove more feasible and immediate. Details are pending about the scope and focus. But the SEZ can potentially go beyond incremental improvements to be a game changer.

Baselines and additional dynamics

Interactions are already substantial and have grown from the 1990s, when then prime minister Goh Chok Tong sought better links with the proposal of a Singapore-Johor-Riau (SIJORI) Growth Triangle. More recent Malaysian initiatives like Iskandar Malaysia have added to the partnership. Economic and people-to-people interdependencies and supply chains of goods and services run thick.