SEDIA Opening the Door for Integrating Drone Technology into Industries
Kota Kinabalu — The Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority (SEDIA) is driving forward efforts to modernise and automate businesses in Sabah by utilising industrial drone technology, and has showcased these possibilities at the Sabah Drone Open Day.
Held on 26 June 2023, the Sabah Drone Open Day was organised by SEDIA with support by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Malaysian Research Accelerator for Technology and Innovation (MRANTI), as well as the Ministry of Higher Education’s Department of Polytechnic and Community College Education.
The event was officially launched by Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Hajiji bin Haji Noor, Chief Minister of Sabah cum SEDIA Chairman. The launching ceremony in the morning was also attended by Datuk Joseph Arthur Kurup (Deputy Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation), Datuk Nor Asiah binti Mohd Yusof (State Attorney-General) and Datuk Abidin Madingkir (State Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister of Sabah).
On display at the event were the latest uses of drone technology in economic sectors, offering a variety of activities such as seminar and panel sessions, drone demonstration and showcase, drone talent / walk-in interview and hiring, business networking sessions, as well as an exhibition with booths by key stakeholders in the field of drone technology.
The event was held with the intention of benefiting targeted groups, such as:
- Industrial players in various sectors that have the potential to benefit from drone technology;
- Oil and gas, utilities as well as surveillance companies that can apply drone technology to their functions;
- Skills training providers; and
- The general public, particularly the youth.
The objectives of the open day are:
- to serve as a platform to create awareness and encourage the use of drones in economic, recreational and general sectors;
- to provide exposure regarding the rules and regulations of drone usage; and
- to increase the attention and interest from the youth towards the use of drones.
As the implementing agency for the Sabah Development Corridor (SDC), all programmes and initiatives carried out by SEDIA are guided by the SDC Blueprint 2.0 (2021–2030) which carries the tagline “Sustainable Growth with Equity and Social Inclusion”. The objectives of the Sabah Drone Open Day too are aligned with several SDC Blueprint 2.0 initiatives, namely to increase the competitiveness of the Sabah’s business and industrial ecosystem, to provide a future workforce with expertise and technology, and to further create more future farmers (i.e. Next Gen Farmers) among the youth to support the Interior Food Valley initiative in Sabah.
The blueprint is a transformative plan with high aspirations formulated to stimulate economic growth while ensuring inclusiveness and sustainability, and sets a target of creating 70,000 additional jobs for Sabahans through SDC by the year 2030.
