65 Per Cent Of ECER Projects Get Off The Ground – Devamany

11/13/2009 — BERNAMA 
About 65.9 per cent or 54 of the projects under the East Coast Economic Region (ECER) have taken off the ground, said Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk S.K Devamany.
He said until Oct 1, the government had disbursed RM480 million of the RM1.5 billion allocation to ECER Development Council (ECERDC), which had been entrusted with the development of 82 projects.
Devamany said they included high-impact projects such as the Kuala Krai (Kelantan)-Simpang Pelangai (Pahang) road widening project, the Kertih Polymer Industry Cluster and several agropolitan farms.
The Kertih Polymer Industry Cluster, which will be the first integrated plastic park in the country, is expected to attract RM2 billion in investment and create 8,000 jobs by 2020, he said when replying to a question from Amran Ab Ghani (PKR-Tanah Merah) at the Dewan Rakyat Thursday.
Devamany said the agropolitan project in Pekan involved 1,450 participants while another in Gua Musang involved 3,000 participants and they were aimed at eradicating poverty among farmers by 2020.
In yet another poverty eradication programme under ECER involved about 1,000 fishermen from 100 villages along the coast between Tumpat, Kelantan and Mersing, Johor, he said.
“They are taking part in value-added fishing activities, which are expected to increase their household income to above RM1,500 a month,” he added.