KUALA LUMPUR, June 11 — Malaysia has approved RM114.7 billion worth of investments in data centres and cloud services between 2021 and 2023, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), he said these investments have created 2,325 high-value new jobs in specialised fields such as data scientists, data analysts, data engineers, cybersecurity analysts, and network engineers.

He said that the Madani Government is committed to positioning Malaysia as a sustainable Artificial Intelligence (AI) Data Centre destination in South-east Asia, as part of its effort to strengthen the country’s position as a leading global investment destination.

Earlier on, Anwar, who is also the finance minister, had chaired the 4th National Investment Council (NIC) meeting for the year.

He said the NIC had agreed for the Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry (Miti) to enhance the current incentive framework for AI data centres via the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida).

This includes the mechanism on the usage of energy and water-efficient equipment, as well as collaboration with the Ministry of Energy Transition and Natural Resources to provide sufficient renewable energy for AI data centres, the Prime Minister said.

"During the meeting, I had emphasised a whole-of-government approach in the ongoing efforts to encourage investment in AI-based data centre sectors, particularly in boosting economic benefits through digitalisation and increasing the economic complexity of various sectors in Malaysia.

"The framework will also include matching data centre players with local companies for the development of local vendors, especially small and medium enterprises, as well as fostering industry-academia collaborations to drive innovation in the development of energy-efficient equipment and software,” he said.

Earlier today, Miti Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz posted on X that Miti, via Mida, will develop a special incentives framework for AI data centres. — Bernama