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Malaysian State To Become Halal Food Industrial Center
by Kazi Mahmood
KUALA LUMPUR, June 29 (IslamOnline) - A Party Islam Se Malaysia (PAS) controlled state in northern Malaysia is gearing up to become the center for both halal (Islamically permissible) food production and information technology (IT), it was disclosed Friday.
Its Chief Minister, Abdul Hadi Awang, said the state could soon become the center of production for halal food and drinks, adding that it is not impossible to achieve this goal since the state had the logistics in place.
He also said the state of Terengganu, under its slogan "Prosperity founded on Islam", will invite investors from within or outside the state to invest in its plan to develop the industries.
Malaysia could become a major player internationally in the halal food market, which has an annual growth potential that is unlimited.
"This is a chance that Terengganu must take," Hadi Awang said, adding that his government is making changes in the agricultural action plan of the state in order to align it with the Malaysian national plan.
This will help the state compete on the international market for halal products, he said. With this development, observers believe that agricultural and industrial activities in the state will register considerable growth and the industry will become an alternative source of income for the region.
Full exploitation of the potential offered by this industrial growth will also render the state more dynamic and resourceful in the future, sources said.
The same applies to the information technology sector, where the state is using Bangalore, India, as the model for which to launch its own technology and communications center.
Idris Jusoh, manager of the State Development Unit, said the choice of Bangalore was based on the amount of colleges there. It has 77 colleges that produce 44,000 workers annually, with 14,000 specialized in computer and IT fields.
The state's education arm on Thursday gave away 2000 computers to schools in Terengganu, saying this was part of the program that will lead to the development of the IT sectors there.
It said children in Terengganu had to be given the chance to use computers at an early age, since they will grow up with the machine that will be part of the foundation of their education in the future.
These students will thus get a chance to compete in the IT world, allowing for easier access to a large number of schools in Malaysia.
The project is financed by "Special Funds" given to specific sectors within the state. This money is part of the oil royalty that was withdrawn from the state since the PAS came to power there.
Mimos, an Internet service provider and the state's education arm, are working on the project worth $2.5 million.
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