Population and business growth can ease oversupply in Iskandar Malaysia

JOHOR BAHRU (May 2): With the continuing efforts of the private and public sectors, Iskandar Malaysia in Johor is poised to usher in hefty population and business growth going forward. This will ease concerns over the residential property oversupply in the economic zone, said Medini Iskandar Malaysia Sdn Bhd (MIM) chief marketing officer Gerard Kho.

As one of the master developers in Iskandar Malaysia, MIM believes there will be more people and businesses moving in as the infrastructure and commercial developments are starting to take shape and have had a positive impact on the market in the past few months, Kho said at the Marketplace Series of Forums jointly organised by the Asian Strategy & Leadership Institute and the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship in Johor today. Themed “Building Cities, Enriching Communities”, this is the second in the series of forums. TheEdgeProperty.com is the event’s media partner.

Kho noted that two catalytic projects in Iskandar, namely EduCity and Medini, will be the main drivers for growth. Medini is expected to attract businesses and corporations when the office and commercial developments there are completed progressively.

"By the end of next year, we will have 1.5 million to 1.8 million commercial space ready in Medini, not including the adjacent areas in Puteri Harbour, and the commercial space should be enough to drive about 18,000 people into the city itself, and maybe just about right to balance the supply between residential and commercial property," he said.

Meanwhile, the 300-acre EduCity is targeting to have a student population of 15,000 in the future, said its developer Iskandar Investment Bhd’s president/CEO Khairil Anwar Ahmad.

Currently, the population in the education hub is about a few thousand, he added.

“We will listen to the feedbacks from our partners in EduCity to understand what they need, and we will add more facilities and ensure the infrastructure is superb to enhance the student's experience in the hub,” he said.

Kho is the speaker at the panel discussion session entitled “The Untold Story: Insights on Developments and New Opportunities in Johor” at the forum.

The session, which was moderated by KGV International Property Consultants executive director Samuel Tan, also saw three other panelists, namely Khairil, Johor Petroleum Development Corp chief operating officer Izhar Hifnei Ismail and Sunway Bhd property development division (Malaysia and Singapore) deputy managing director Tan Wee Bee, sharing their views on the economic zone.