Bioeconomy a catalyst for new wealth creation for Sabah - Musa Aman

The Bio Borneo 2015 conference and exhibition, themed "Bio-based Technologies for Wealth Creation Through the Bioeconomy", will be held on April 20-21 in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.

Sabah Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Musa Aman, said the theme was in line with the latest developments and potential growth of Sabah's bioeconomy, citing it as a catalyst for the growth of new economic resources capable of generating new wealth and boosting the income of the people and nation as a whole.

"Since the launch of the Sabah Development Corridor (SDC) in 2008 until November 2014, Sabah has recorded cumulative committed investment of RM138 billion.

"We aim to add to these investment figures in anticipation of an influx of investments in the field of bio-based technology," he said in a statement released by the Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation (BiotechCorp) today.

Bio Borneo is co-organised by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, BiotechCorp and the Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority, and supported by the Sabah Biodiversity Centre.

The conference will cover topics such as Bio-based Technology: What's in store?, Wealth Creation Through Bio-based Industry Technologies and Roads to Commercialisation.

Musa is scheduled to launch Bio Borneo 2015 during which there will also be several biotech-related memoranda of understanding signings.

Bio Borneo has in recent years served as a platform to disseminate information on current bioeconomy research and development efforts and related business potential, along with sharing on bioeconomic transformation programmes and implementation in Malaysia, with a stronger focus on Borneo.

Held annually, the inaugural Bio Borneo was held in Kuching, Sarawak in 2012, and has since alternated between Sabah and Sarawak each year.

The event is part of the national bioeconomy initiative, focusing specifically on driving the biotechnology innovation agenda forward on the island of Borneo.

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