KUALA LUMPUR: The Digital Ministry has revealed that Malaysia's digital investment has surged to RM66.22 billion in the first half of the year, up from RM46.2 billion last year.
Its minister Gobind Singh Deo said that this significant increase not only surpassed last year's record but also demonstrated the digital economy's resilience amid global uncertainties.
He said the rise in investment had resulted in the creation of 24,498 new jobs, exceeding the 22,258 jobs recorded in the previous year.
"The digital sector continues to be a powerhouse for high-skilled, high-income employment," he added.
On the export front, Gobind said Malaysia secured RM1.936 billion in digital export opportunities involving 228 companies across 11 countries, including Indonesia, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
This marks a 43 per cent increase from RM1.353 billion in the same period last year, he said.
He said data centres and cloud companies had been major contributors to the digital investment value, with Information Technology (Infotech) and Global Business Services (BGS) leading in digital job creation.
"In the first half of this year, 451 tech companies have been awarded Malaysia Digital initiative status, significantly surpassing the 256 companies last year. Of these, 39 per cent are foreign companies contributing to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), while 61 per cent are local," he added.