KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) hopes the government will decide to restore the cabotage exemption at the Cabinet meeting tomorrow.
Chairman Datuk Wira Dr Rais Hussin Mohamed Ariff said the exemption is vital to make Malaysia an appealing investment destination for digital infrastructure in light of the Malaysia Digital Economy Blueprint (MyDigital) initiative.
“We have written two position papers of which we shared to related ministers including the prime minister, and for the short term, we request exemption from cabotage for submarine fibre-type repairs.
“For the for long term, let (the government) introduce a legislative policy to ensure that this matter will not recur again to restore investor’s confidence and for Malaysia to become a hub for Asian,” he said during the Mid-Day Update programme on Bernama TV today.
Rais said the cabotage policy would have an impact on the undersea Internet cable industry.
“The fibre businesses highly rely on service level guarantee and service level agreement that was given out by technology giants.
“Every time there is a fibre cut, they must restore the fibre very quickly. Therefore, having a cabotage policy will delay and defer the restoration of the fibre cut and this will have an impact on the ability of providers to provide services that are resilient and robust,” he said.
The Cabinet is expected to make a decision on the cabotage policy tomorrow following a two-week period given by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin for related ministries to review the country's cabotage policy on digital and shipping industries.
The ministries involved are the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Transport, Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives, Ministry of Communications and Multimedia, as well as the Economic Planning Unit in the Prime Minister's Department.
The revocation of the cabotage exemption that previously allowed foreign vessels to carry out undersea communications cable repair works in Malaysian waters was announced by Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong in November 2020.
Wee said the move was taken to reduce the outflow of foreign exchange in the form of freight or charter party payment and minimise the country’s dependence on foreign vessels by increasing the involvement of local shipping companies in the domestic services.
— Bernama
