“Some may argue that other Asean countries are catching up quickly as destinations for investments, but I can say Malaysia’s infrastructure is still one of its biggest attractions,” he said in an interview with FMT.

Katsuhiko said that there were a variety of factors that allowed Malaysia to consistently attract Japanese investments, which have totalled RM80.8 billion since diplomatic ties were established over 60 years ago.

“We find the Malaysian bureaucratic system is quite solid and consistent. Of course, there have been some political changes, but the government-to-government relationship has remained very strong and solid.

“Even during the pandemic, the inflow of Japanese investment has continued, and we didn’t see any decrease, to my surprise,” he said, pointing to the RM4.5 billion that has been channelled into Malaysia as of September this year.

During the pandemic, Malaysia’s expertise in the areas of logistics and the manufacturing of electrical and electronic products remained important to Japan’s supply chain, Katsuhiko said.

In 2020, Japan was Malaysia’s third largest investor and its fourth largest trading partner.

Dispelling scepticism about Malaysia’s standing in Southeast Asia, he said the income level in Malaysia is relatively high among Asean countries, so a lot of Japanese companies try to use Malaysia as a testing ground to see if their goods or products are attractive to the people of Asean in general.

Japan has become one of Malaysia’s biggest global partners since diplomatic relations were established between the two countries in 1957. Around 1,500 Japanese firms have established local operations, employing close to half a million workers.

Katsuhiko expressed his desire to see areas of investment expand further, having already grown beyond the petroleum and rubber industries of the early years of the relationship to now include renewable energy players and digital technologies.