RM1.2 BLN CEMENT FACTORY IN TONGOD A CATALYST FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH – HAJIJI

TONGOD, The setting up of Sabah's largest integrated clinker and cement factory in Kampung Kawayoi Pinangah here will catalyse the economic growth for the district and the state. Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the RM1.2 billion project will help uplift the local community's socio-economy including providing more than 1,000 job opportunities to the local community. "This project also augurs well with the government's determination to end hardcore poverty in the state," he said after the factory groundbreaking ceremony in Kampung Penangah here, today. Moreover, the inspiration to set up the cement factory in Penangah is in view of the availability of resources needed to produce cement, he said. "In tandem with the construction of the cement factory, other infrastructures would also be set up such as roads leading to the site, water treatment plant, electricity and telecommunications that indirectly benefit the people in the rural areas, particularly the folks in Tongod," he added. He sai d the project is one of the government's initiatives to stimulate Sabah's economic growth and attract investors to the state. 'Once operational, the new factory will complement the existing Cement Industries Sabah Sdn Bhd's facility. I believe this new factory will not only boost our cement production but we can also be a cement exporter.' At the same ceremony, Hajiji also presented 83 land grants totalling 186.06 hectares to the recipients from Kampung Kuamut (27), Kampung Penangah (21), Kampung Entilibon (25), and Kampung Mananam (10). Source: BERNAMA News Agency