KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia signed three agreements at the just-concluded Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) Ministerial meeting, namely the (overarching) agreement on IPEF, Clean Economy agreement and Fair Economy agreement, the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry said.
IPEF is an economic framework led by the United States and comprise of 14 partner countries namely Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam.
The three agreements were substantially concluded during the IPEF Ministerial Meeting in San Francisco that was held on Nov 13-14, 2023.
Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Aziz participated in the IPEF ministerial meeting as well as the inaugural IPEF Clean Economy Investment Forum in Singapore on June 6.
Under the IPEF Clean Economy agreement, partners among others will advance regional cooperation to accelerate deployment of clean energy technology, promote carbon market activities, collaborate on regional and international Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) value chains and promote sustainable transport. The agreement also establishes a novel mechanism for IPEF partners to develop and participate in "Cooperative Work Programmes" (CWPs).
On the IPEF Fair Economy agreement, partners are committed to strengthen their implementation of anti-corruption measures and taxation initiatives to boost trade and investment, by promoting a fair and transparent business
environment.
Partners will also enhance their efforts to combat corruption including bribery and support efforts to improve tax transparency and the exchange of information as well as domestic resource mobilisation and tax administration.
In conjunction with the Ministerial Meeting, Malaysia also ratified the IPEF agreement Relating to Supply Chain Resilience which was signed on Nov 14, 2023 in San Francisco.
With the completion of the ratification process Malaysia is now ready to implement the agreement and this represents a significant step forward in Malaysia's efforts to strengthen supply chain resilience.
In addition, Malaysia intends to use this framework to collaborate with other IPEF partners to improve, among others, the resiliency, efficiency, diversity and inclusivity of our supply chains.
Miti said the ratification of the agreement is a crucial step towards achieving these objectives and reinforcing Malaysia's position as a key player in the Indo-Pacific region.
"Malaysia see great synergies among the IPEF agreements and Malaysia's current policies, namely, the recently launched National Semiconductor Strategy, New Industrial Master Plan 2030 and the National Energy Transition Roadmap. I believe the IPEF provides opportunity for us to work holistically so that it would benefit all IPEF partners as a whole. In this vein, Malaysia looks forward to developing cooperation and exploring bilateral support measures with IPEF partners countries in funding and adopting nascent technologies such as green hydrogen and CCUS, " Tengku Zafrul said.
Miti said to showcase the tangible benefits of the Clean Economy agreement, the inaugural Clean Economy Investor Forum (CEIF), a first-of-its kind annual forum was organised on June 6, 2024, alongside the Ministerial Meeting.
The CEIF brought together many of the region's top investors, cutting-edge project proponents, innovative start-up entrepreneurs, and senior government officials to mobilise financing in support of the deployment of clean energy and climate friendly technologies and infrastructure in the IPEF region.
The IPEF partners identified over US$23 billion of priority infrastructure projects, including about US$6 billion of ready projects that proponents presented to investors.
Malaysian investors and project proponents, namely Khazanah Nasional Bhd, Petroliam Nasional Bhd, Gentari, Nano Malaysia Bhd (Gigafactory), MTC Orec Sdn. Bhd., Faradays Energy Sdn. Bhd. and Limpahan Engineering Sdn. Bhd. participated in the forum.