East Coast Economic Region (ECER) (Malay: Wilayah Ekonomi Pantai Timur or Korridor Pantai Timur) is a new economic development corridor in Malaysia based on the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia - which covers states of Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and the north of Mersing district of Johor. ECER is also one of the three development regions formed in Peninsular Malaysia, other development regions being the Iskandar Malaysia (formerly known as Iskandar Development Region and South Johor Economic Region) and the Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER). The ECER initiative will span for 12 years starting from 2007. The master planner for ECER is Malaysia-owned oil and gas company, Petronas.
The ECER was launched by Malaysia's Prime Minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in Kuala Terengganu and Kota Bahru on October 30, 2007 and in Kuantan the next day. During the launch of the project, the Prime Minister announced a RM 6 billion allocation for the opening phase of the project, strengthening the Malaysian government's commitment to the project.
| “ | We want to ensure that no Malaysian, including the people in Pahang, is left behind in the national development mainstream, we want the prosperity achieved by "Pahang Darul Makmur" to be clearly and fairly reflected, - Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, then Prime Minister of Malaysia. | ” |
A four member secretariat has been set up in Terengganu to monitor the progress of the project and develop the master plan. Details of the Master Plan has yet to be released as details are still being worked out between the states and the Master Planner which is Petronas. It is expected they will meet up once a week.
With the creation of the East Coast Economic Region, nearly the whole of Peninsular Malaysia has been converted into Economic Regions with the exceptions being Northern Johor, Southern Perak and Southern Negeri Sembilan.
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