As part of its 18 top recommendations, the Singapore Business Federation (SBF), which has more than 32,000 members, and PwC Singapore on Monday said expanding the zone to include the Indonesian islands of Batam, Bintan and Karimum (BBK) would deepen ASEAN integration and boost competitiveness and growth.
“Many of the challenges that businesses tell us are hindering them from taking advantage of the JS-SEZ, such as physical connectivity, digital infrastructure and navigating the regulatory environment, those also extend to the BBK region, so can we consider applying that playbook and growing the Sijori growth triangle,” said Musa Fazal, chief policy and operating officer of SBF during a press conference on Monday.
The JS-SEZ was officially launched in January 2025, with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his Singaporean counterpart Lawrence Wong agreeing to develop various industries, including aerospace, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and electronics in the 3,571 sq km (1,379 square mile) zone.
Established in 1994, the Singapore-Johor-Riau (Sijori) Growth Triangle was designed to strengthen economic ties among Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore by leveraging each country’s strengths to attract investment and foster growth.