9th NDP Talks Kick Off, Details Later
By Shareen Han

Bandar Seri Begawan - A Meeting to discuss the draft of the 9th National Development Plan (NDP) for 2007-2011 and Outline of Strategy and Policy Development for 2007-2016 was held yesterday.

His Royal Highness Prince Mohamed Bolkiah, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, chaired the meeting involving committee members, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement.

However, the ministry said there were no further details of when the Outline of Strategy and Policy Development and the 9th National Development Plan would be officially released.

The meeting of the "Badan Perancana Kemajuan Jangka Panjang", or Long Term Development Planner Body took place at Balai Penghadapan, Bukit Kayangan.

The 8th National Development Plan, which was presented by the Department of Economic Planning and Development, ended in 2005.

The government of His Majesty the Sultan and Yang DiPertuan of Brunei Darussalam had allocated a total of $7.3 billion for the 8th National Development Plan.

Brunei's small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) sector was emphasised in the 8th National Development Plan to generate employment and revenue outside the oil and gas sector.

The country's economy is still dominated by the oil and gas sector, even though it shrank by 2.6 per cent in 2005, while the non oil and gas sector expanded by 4.1 per cent in 2005, according to the latest edition of Brunei Economic Bulletin.

According to Asean Focus Group, one of the region's leading corporate advisory firms specialising in regional representation and direct investments, the gross domestic product in Brunei rose from $31,800 in 2000 to $42,900 in 2005.

Overall, provisional data showed that Brunei's economy in 2005 grew by 0.4 per cent, marginally lower compared to 0.5 per cent in 2004. -- Courtesy of The Brunei Times

Click Here To Have Your Say On This Story

Brudirect.com News

Brunei's Fastest Growing Website with