Anwar: Malaysia solidifying global semiconductor position with 2nd chip design park
17 Jan 2025
Malaysia is gearing up to launch its second chip design park less than a year after establishing the first in Selangor, as it seeks to solidify its global semiconductor supply chain position.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said Malaysia was establishing itself as a prime mover in data centres and artificial intelligence among Asean countries while advancing efforts to explore the myriad possibilities of cryptocurrency.
However, he said Malaysia must remain focused on progress rather than celebrating short-term achievements.
“Recently, we launched our National Semiconductor Strategy, which earmarks game-changing incentives and investment to make Malaysia indispensable to the global semiconductor supply chain.
“(Malaysia) is already the world’s sixth largest exporter of semiconductors and is now aiming to move further up the value chain through a targeted focus on front-end activities.
“And we are hitting the ground running: in the coming weeks, we will launch our second chip design park less than a year after our first,” he said during his lecture entitled “The Adaptive Edge: Malaysia’s Global Strategy in an Uncertain Era” at the London School of Economics and Political Science today.
Anwar, who is also finance minister, said that while Malaysia is moving forward in semiconductor development, it is also making efforts to do this sustainably.
“Malaysia is committed to moving away from existing conventional power generation, increasing renewable energy composition to 70 per cent of the total generation capacity by 2050.”
Malaysia previously launched its first semiconductor integrated circuit (IC) design park in Puchong as part of Malaysia’s plans to move up the value chain in the semiconductor industry and “Made by Malaysia” ambitions.
The Malaysia Semiconductor IC Design Park, set up in collaboration with the federal government, international semiconductor firms, and venture capitalists, aims to position Malaysia as a potential powerhouse in the global IC design industry.
The strategic initiative is designed to leverage Malaysia’s technological capabilities and resources, foster innovation, and advance the country’s reputation in high-tech manufacturing and design.
The park site was meticulously chosen after an extensive evaluation process among the locations in Klang Valley.
