With the establishment of Malaysia, Heart of Digital ASEAN (MHODA) portal, the nation is laying the foundation for digitalisation and doing it correctly at this early stage. MHODA is a single platform designed to attract and facilitate digital investments into Malaysia launched by Dato’ Sri Mustapa bin Mohamed, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Economy).
The portal works in tandem with the recently established Digital Investment Office (DIO) which is tasked to coordinate, assess and evaluate digital investment projects, while providing end-to-end facilitation to investors. DIO will also put forward future-ready policies and guides on talent requirements, digital infrastructure networks and address operational issues faced by businesses during the current pandemic and beyond.
Economic Minister expressed confident that the DIO through the MHODA platform will ensure a quicker and more streamlined process for digital investment applications, as investors need not have to navigate multiple channels or IPAs, to secure their investments in Malaysia. To ensure these facilities are run smoothly the Government has entrusted agencies MIDA and MDEC to lead the DIO in this region.
Both agencies will be working towards delivering the Government’s aspiration to attract RM70 billion worth of investments by 2025 and to elevate the contribution of digital economy to Malaysia’s GDP from the current 19.1 percent to 22.6 percent.
Mr. Arham Abdul Rahman, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MIDA, assured that “the branding of Malaysia as the Heart of Digital ASEAN serves the purpose of this single digital investment interface in allowing MIDA to make swift decisions in handling investors’ needs and assuring investors to firm-up investment plans, and proceed on the project implementation.
Mr. Arham also highlighted that the DIO initiative will further solidify Malaysia’s aim to reinvigorate the national agenda to enhance competitiveness as formulated in the National Investment Aspirations (NIA) which focus on coherence and cohesiveness across all national policy initiatives relating to investment, including the New Industrial Masterplan and the 12th Malaysia Plan. Meanwhile Surina Shukri, CEO of MDEC reiterated that the DIO will operate as a single window for all investors in the digital economy, and in the role, it can establish a centralised data and reporting platform to capture a holistic view of digital investments and evaluate any interventions that may be required.
Through this DIO online platform, investors will be able to submit their investment interest through a single-entry point, creating a quick facilitation for quality digital investment into the country.
