Sabah Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Juhar Mahiruddin (centre) with his wife Toh Puan Norlidah Tan Sri RM Jasni (fifth right), Hajiji (fourth left) with his wife Datin Seri Juliah Salag (fourth right), Dr Huang (fifth left) and other guests tossing the "yee sang".
KOTA KINABALU: China sees highly of Malaysia's Madani concept and the Sabah Maju Jaya development plan.
Its consul-general here Dr Huang Shifang said these would create new chances for strengthening the friendly cooperation between China and Malaysia, particularly between China and Sabah.
"Standing at this new starting point, let's jointly seize the opportunities to improve exchanges and cooperation, deepen the friendship between our peoples and promote the China-Malaysia community with a shared future," she said in her speech a Chinese New Year reception hosted by the Chinese Consulate here on Monday (Jan 22).
Huang said through cooperation, Malaysia and China would achieve the respective development goals that ensure the well-being of the people and contribute towards making the world a better place for all.
She said despite the global challenges to world peace and development last year, the people of both nations continued to forge ahead and accomplished many achievements.
"The implementation of the Malaysia Madani concept and the Sabah Maju Jaya development plan have seen remarkable progress," she added.
China, under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, achieved a smooth transition in its Covid-19 response efforts, she said.
"Steady progress has been made in pursuing high-quality development.
"China achieved 5.2% GDP growth in 2023.
"Our modernised industrial system has been further upgraded and the country's economy has sustained the momentum of recovery," she added.
Huang said last year, the two nations had reached an important consensus on building the China-Malaysia community with a shared future that opens a new chapter of bilateral relations.
"Since Dec 1, China and Malaysia have implemented reciprocal visa-free policies, which greatly benefits the people-to-people exchanges and cooperation between our countries," she said.
Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the state greatly valued its strong cooperation with China and aimed for even stronger ties.
"The Sabah government attaches great importance to the good relationship.
"Our efforts in improving the relationship between Sabah and China have produced fruitful outcomes over the years," he said, adding a lot more could still be done to enhance the friendly ties, exchanges and cooperation.
