MARii: New gov't should support NAP 2020

The National Automotive Policy (NAP 2020) and third national car project will not be scrapped despite the change in the country’s leadership, says the Malaysian Automotive Robotics and IoT Institute (MARii).

Chief executive officer Madani Sahari (photo) said the NAP 2020 was approved by the previous cabinet of which the current Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was a member.

“As we were discussing with our bosses at the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), we think the new government would want to continue with the NAP 2020,” he told a media briefing on MARii’s Automotive Industry Performance Update 2019 and Outlook in 2020 in Kuala Lumpur today.

He said the vision of NAP 2020 is to ensure not only local development but also the industry’s contribution to the economy.

On the third national car project, he said it will also remain as it is a privately-funded project and not funded by the government.

“If the private sector says they want to stop, there is nothing that the government can do but, as far as we are concerned, there has been no news that they will stop,” he said.

He said the third national carmaker will be showcasing its concept and prototype vehicles during the Malaysia Autoshow that has been delayed to July 2020 from April this year.

MARii is an agency under MITI tasked with spearheading the development of the automotive sector. — Bernama