THE World Bank’s declaration that Sarawak is now a high-income state showed that the state is “on the right track” to becoming a developed state by 2030, Premier Abang Johari Openg said. 

He also said the World Bank’s economic statistical data “is (also) an indicator that the state’s economy is growing”. 

He was referring to the gross national income – the total income earned by a country’s people and businesses – of Sarawak that the bank’s lead economist in Malaysia, Apurva Sanghi, said had exceeded the high-income threshold of US$13,205 (RM61,500). 

The World Bank’s latest high-income data was released on July 1.  

Sanghi said the data was based on the World Bank’s conversion of the data obtained from the statistics department of Malaysia. 

Abang Johari, speaking to reporters after declaring open a mosque at Taman Uni in Kota Samarahan, said the income would go towards funding various development projects that had been planned in accordance with the state’s 2030 post-Covid development strategy. 

He said the projects were in the three key sectors of tourism, agriculture, and manufacturing. 

In tourism, one key area that needed to be developed is air connectivity – a subtle reference to the state’s boutique airline. 

He added that money would also be channeled to developing the state’s basic infrastructure – electricity and water. 

Earlier this month, Deputy Premier Dr Sim Kui Hian had disclosed the state’s revenue in the first six months of the year was close to the RM11.9 billion it received for the whole of last year. – July 7, 2023.