By NIK KHUSAIRI IBRAHIM
PENANG: Penang must be actively involved in agricultural growth be-sides being a transportation hub in the Northern Corridor Economic Re-gion (NCER).
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Rashid Abdullah said Penang had existing resources and expertise in the agriculture sector.
The state still had a substan- tial amount of agriculture land to contribute towards future econo-mic growth, Abdul Rashid said this after the second session of the investiture ceremony in conjunc-tion with Yang di-Pertua Negri Tun Abdul Rahman Abbas’ 69th birthday celebration at Dewan Sri Pinang yesterday.
“We do have land for farming, ani-mal husbandry and aquaculture that can be utilised for sustainable eco-nomic growth.
“Government-linked companies that has the expertise in the agricul-ture sector can be roped in to help establish balanced and sustainable growth,” he said.
Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon had said on Saturday that Pe-nang International Airport would be expanded as the state was poised to be the transportation hub in the NCER.
Sime Darby Bhd was preparing the blueprint for NCER which had proven track record in the agriculture sector, said Abdul Rashid.
NCER, encompassing Penang, Per-lis, Kedah and northern Perak, would be launched soon to promote social and economic growth that are sus-tainable and balanced.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had said Penang could expect rapid development in the transportation sector as plans were in the pipeline to expand and up-grade airport and seaport, and im-prove public transport services.
A total of 316 people were confer-red awards and medals at the se-cond session.
Among those conferred the Dar-jah Setia Pangkuan Negeri (DSPN) which carries the title Datuk, were Chiptronics (M) Sdn Bhd managing director Pang Yun Tiam and Malay-sian Industrial Development Autho-rity deputy director general II Jalilah Baba.