PREMIER Abang Johari Openg said Sarawak could double its gross domestic product (GDP) of RM140 billion last year to RM282 billion by 2030. 

He said if Sarawak could increase its income from the usual RM5 billion a year to RM12 billion last year, there was little reason why the state could not double its GDP by 2030 – the targeted date set under the state’s post-Covid development strategy. 

Alluding to the shift in the state’s economic base to the “green economy” – the export of hydrogen and other renewable resources – the premier told the 150 heads of department and senior officers attending an annual retreat in Ipoh, Perak that his confidence was due to state and global economic environment projections. 

Sarawak has tremendous potential to exploit as the world moves towards sustainability, he said. 

“The new world economic order has presented Sarawak tremendous opportunities that were not available before,” he added.  

He cited the Conference of Parties on climate change that was scheduled to be held in Dubai in 2028 as a “a clear signal” that he was right.  

Sarawak will start exporting its hydrogen by 2027. 

With the world transitioning to clean energy to achieve the Paris Agreement of net-zero emissions by 2050, he said Sarawak’s sources of revenue from environment-friendly resources would include carbon trading. 

The potential comes from having vast areas still under forest cover, he said. 

From traditional sources, methanol and ammonia exports would further swell the state’s coffers. 

With increased revenue, Abang Johari said the state would be able to triple its median household income from the current RM5,000 to RM15,000 in 2030. – October 19, 2023.