The Ba’Kelalan assemblyman said the highway was part of the 425km Sarawak-Sabah Link Road, and which had been approved by the previous Pakatan Harapan government.

He said the Trans-Borneo Highway, if and when built, would connect Sarawak, Sabah, Brunei and Kalimantan.

“This link will be of strategic importance once the Indonesian government begins the process of moving the capital from Jakarta to East Kalimantan,” he said when debating the state budget at the state assembly today.

He said the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research had said earlier this year that this transportation network project would be the backbone of the area, creating diverse spillover effects ranging from the creation of industries – such as logistics, tourism, wholesale and retail trade – to new township development.

“The proposed relocation of Indonesia’s capital to Kalimantan from Jakarta in 2024 would speed up the impact and bring a multiplier effect of about two to three times on Sabah and Sarawak’s economic growth,” he added.

Baru said the current federal Works Minister Fadillah Yusof had not given a definite answer as to whether the Trans-Borneo Highway project would be carried out by the Perikatan Nasional government.

“If the federal government decides against the project, I urge the Sarawak government to take it over as this would drive the development of Sarawak up several notches.

“Otherwise, the Sarawak government should urge the federal government to start work on the game-changing Trans-Borneo Highway without delay, so that it will be ready when the Indonesian capital moves to Kalimantan.

“It will at the same time provide employment and inject funds into the economy of northern Sarawak,” he said.