Singapore and Malaysia have planned to build a joint “wellness township”, which will set aside a huge 200-hectare site – the size of 374 football fields.
The leaders of the two countries also discussed the first water agreement that will expire on 31 August 2011. Singapore’s state investment company Temasek Holdings and the Malaysian government’s investment company Khazanah Nasional will develop a 50-50 joint venture set up for the township in Johor’s Iskandar Malaysia zone.
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak said the private sectors in both countries will be invited to participate in the project, which is expected to be released within 12 months.
“We agreed that there must be real and substantive progress on this development and today’s meeting has defined the framework and concept,” said Mr. Najib. The idea of a wellness township was first mooted when he visited Singapore in April last year.
Holistic services and facilities, such as alternative medicine and traditional healing will be offered in the project.
During their closed-door retreat at the Shangri-La Hotel, the leaders also tackled the controversial water issue, particularly the first water agreement made between the two countries which will expire on Aug 31 next year.
The Skudai Water Works Treatment in Johor, which Singapore has been using to extract water from the river, will be given to the Malaysians “in good working order” without any charge, according to Mr. Lee.
During yesterday’s news conference, a Malaysian reporter asked Mr. Najib for any updates on the idea of a third bridge connecting the two countries — an idea that first floated in 2009 when Mr. Najib and Mr. Lee met in Singapore.
Mr. Najib answered that the third link – in addition to the Causeway and the Second link – was envisioned as a “long-term project.”
“Our immediate priority is to maximise the usage of the Second Link, so we don’t have any time frame with respect to the third link,” he added.
The construction of a bridge linking the eastern side of Johor – from Pengerang and Desaru – to Singapore in view of the increasing movements between both countries was proposed by Mr. Najib to Mr. Lee during a meeting last year.