press release

Speech by YBhg Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Lodin Wok Kamaruddin at the Official Launch of the Tun Razak Exchange

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim
Assalamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh

YAB Dato’ Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak
Prime Minister of Malaysia, Minister of Finance as well as Chairman of Board of Advisors, 1MDB

Yang Berhormat Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department

Yang Berhormat Dato’ Raja Nong Chik Bin Dato’ Raja Zainal Abidin
Minister of Federal Territories and Urban Well-being

His Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good Afternoon, Salam 1Malaysia

Welcome

• It is a genuine honour for me to welcome you today to this momentous beginning. Thank you for being here with us at the launch of the Kuala Lumpur International Financial District, where the future holds so much promise. Guiding us through this remarkable journey is our Prime Minister, YAB Dato’ Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak. We are now about to enter a new and exciting phase where we will celebrate and bring to life an idea whose time has come.
• We envision KLIFD as a global meeting place, where great minds converge to bring out the best of innovation and ideas. And I am proud to represent 1MDB here today as its Chairman of Board of Directors, the Master Developer to bring this vision into a reality.

The conception

• Three years ago, when we were first articulating this idea of having a dedicated economic and financial centre for Malaysia, we decided to focus on where this journey will bring us.
• We want to have a new business and financial hub that brings in the east and west together. One that can grow both Islamic and conventional finance. We want to see Malaysian talent thriving and leading at this centre, alongside global citizens. We want it to be beyond just a successful hub of business, but also an oasis where ideas flow, knowledge exchanged and innovations catalyzed.

Strategic enabler

• As a strategic development company wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia, this vision fits our strategic intent. 1MDB strives not only to enable economic successes, but also to help mature a nation. Our goal is to help turn Malaysia into a high-income economy. We strive to bring prosperity and opportunity to all Malaysians.
• Our focus has always been on new growth that can bring about wide-ranging effects on the economy to help grow or regenerate other industries and create spill-over. This means 1MDB invests in two things: 1) human capital development and 2) projects that generate long term sustainable economic growth.
• Through our CSR arm Yayasan 1MDB for instance, we address both immediate concerns and longer-term targets. We provide mobile boat and bus clinics that service remote communities, and we nurture talent through academic grants and youth programmes. We believe that to be successful in building a nation, all its citizens must have a stake. It is our role to act as a catalyst and address some of the gaps in the economy towards building a brighter Malaysia.

Aspirations

• And KLIFD will be at the core of realising this vision. This new city within a city, a business district housed in a park, will harness the latest technologies and design. KLFID will have the added advantage of our culture and traditions to create a model for the life of the future. It is our aspiration that KLIFD will attract the best that the world has to offer. We want the best of talent to flock to Kuala Lumpur, to meet and mix, to germinate ideas and develop new ways of thinking, enriching not only our city but also the nation and the world.

Sustainability

• KLIFD’s green credentials will be world class. Sustainability, as you can see, is not a mere catchword for KLIFD. It is at the very core of its design philosophy. More than 20 acres of its land will be dedicated to green area. And to start with, 1MDB has worked together with Forest Research Institution Malaysia, or FRIM, to identify trees within the vicinity which should be preserved and transplanted. Some of these magnificent trees are 50 years old; they have witnessed the city grow around them. It is only right that they usher us into the new future.

Exchange and people

Ladies & gentlemen,

• KLIFD is about bringing people together – a confluence of talent, ideas and resources. Together, we are building the place of the future, of our dreams. Here at KLIFD, Malaysia is taking her rightful place on the international stage, inviting all to share in the vision and grow a brighter tomorrow for all.
• Last but not least, I would like to express, on behalf of the 1MDB board, management and staff, our heartfelt appreciation and gratitude to everyone who has helped in the making of KLIFD. We are especially touched by the commitment you have shown in working together to benefit the nation. We look forward to your continued support.

Thank you.