Skip to main content

More work for Malaysia’s ethnic contractors

The bumiputera, or bumiputra, contractors will be offered more contracts in Sabah, Sarawak, Labuan and Peninsular Malaysia after years of delayed projects.
By David Arminas May 31, 2024 Read time: 1 min
A boost for the bumiputeras (image © Aisyaqilumar/Dreamstime)

Around US$67.6 million has been set aside by the government of Malaysia to award small-scale Bumiputera contractors with federal road maintenance projects in 2024.

Bumiputera or bumiputra is a term used in Malaysia to describe Malays, the Orang Asli of Peninsular Malaysia and various indigenous peoples of Eastern Malaysia.

According to a report in the New Straits Times, the contractors will be offered the works through a balloting process, said Alexander Nanta Linggi. Malaysia’s works minister.

Out of the total, 122 projects in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan will receive $21.25 million and rest will be earmarked for 336 projects in Peninsular Malaysia.

Last December, the New Straits Times reported that at least 70% or 90,000 out of 140,000 Bumiputera contractors nationwide were in financial difficulty because of fewer government projects. The contractors reportedly said fewer tenders were being opened, a result of years of government changes which led to some projects being delayed or cancelled outright. 

Related Content

  • Champlain Bridge set to open by end of year, says SNC-Lavalin
    May 14, 2018
    The Canadian city’s replacement Champlain Bridge will open on schedule at the end of the year. Montreal, one of Canada’s largest cities, will have a well-earned Christmas present in December when the new Champlain Bridge opens after 42 months of construction. The new bridge, part of a six-lane 6km corridor including roads, is being built alongside the original bridge over the Saint Lawrence River and Seaway canal system. The new bridge, 3.4km long, runs from the île des Soeurs to Brossard, immediately dow
  • Repairing concrete roads using new technology
    July 28, 2015
    In the US state of Arkansas, a key stretch of concrete roads has been improved, allowing it to cope with current traffic volumes.
  • Brazil Tamoio highway and São Sebastião tunnel work
    July 5, 2016
    Brazil’s Tamoio Highway and São Sebastião tunnel construction is of major importance – Mauro Nogarin reports. The modernisation and expansion of Brazil’s Tamoio highway is a major project for Brazil. The project has an estimated cost of $1.5 billion and work on the first section from Planalto was completed in January 2014, costing around $350 million. The project is being managed by the state-owned agency DERSA, which deals with road development. According to the concessionaire for the Tamoios highway p
  • 2-4 year-old construction equipment tops buyer ‘wish list’
    May 11, 2012
    A leading used construction equipment auctioneer firm boss believes equipment aged between 2 and 4 years is now topping buyers’ ‘wish lists’, as 1 to 2-year-old used stocks deplete. Jonnie Keys, General Manager of Euro Auctions, said that with the cost of new equipment currently up by around 20% on prices in June 2009, the used market is still strong. “Euro Auctions has repeatedly seen over 30% of all plant sold leaving the UK and Europe for projects in Australia, South Africa, South America, Central Ameri