GEORGE TOWN: Penang must move beyond its reliance on low-cost manufacturing and adopt a strategy focused on innovation, high-value creation, and local enterprise development to maintain its global competitiveness, said Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong.
Speaking at the iNPenang International Awards 2025 held on June 21, Sim emphasised that while the low-cost model had positioned Penang as a manufacturing powerhouse over the past decades, the state must now evolve under its next phase, dubbed Penang 3.0.
“If Penang 2.0 was about global companies coming to Penang to make their products here, Penang 3.0 must be about supporting our own start-ups towards higher value creation,” Sim said in a statement released today.
The Penang 3.0 vision seeks to transform the state from a manufacturing hub into a centre of innovation, technology, and high-value production, powered by local talent and businesses. Sim highlighted the need to cultivate homegrown capabilities in four key areas—talents, tech, things, and trademarks—to shift from “Made in Penang” to “Made by Penang” over the next 50 years.
He also commended the Penang state government, led by Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, for driving major infrastructure projects such as the expansion of Penang International Airport and the Mutiara Line LRT, which are set to boost the state’s economic prospects.
Sim expressed confidence that with the right policies and incentives, Penang could sustain its reputation as a high-quality global brand.
