KUALA LUMPUR, 22 March 2017 – Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, together with Jack Ma, founder and Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group, launched the world’s first Digital Free Trade Zone (DFTZ) today. DFTZ will provide physical and virtual zones to facilitate SMEs to capitalise on the convergence of exponential growth of the internet economy and cross-border eCommerce activities. It will act as a microcosm to support internet companies to trade goods, provide services, innovate and co-create solutions.
DFTZ will be a boost to Malaysia’s eCommerce roadmap that was introduced in 2016, which aims to double the nation’s eCommerce growth and increase the GDP contribution to RM211 billion (approximately US$47.68 billion) by year 2020.
“Malaysians have embraced the internet economy and eCommerce in a big way. We are now leading the eCommerce market in the region generating revenue of US$2.3billion in 2015. With the launch of the world’s first Digital Free Trade Zone, Malaysia will serve as a regional eFulfillment center, and also become the regional hub for SMEs, marketplaces and monobrands,” said Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak, the Prime Minister of Malaysia.