KUALA LUMPUR, 24 February 2023 – Hamdan Abdul Majeed, Managing Director of Think City, welcomes the announcement made by YAB Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who is also Minister of Finance, and the government of Malaysia for trusting Think City and Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) to revive Downtown Kuala Lumpur as a Creative and Culture District. The efforts also look to ensure public housing communities benefit from the urban rejuvenation efforts.

The downtown areas of Kuala Lumpur have long been a focus for Think City’s work as the geographical space is a strategic convergence point with immense untapped potential within the heritage core because the area has hollowed out with administrative centres and residents moving to suburbs in Greater Kuala Lumpur. Therefore, Think City together with DBKL, with the support of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, National Heritage Department and Yayasan Hasanah, embarked on re-energising the city based on strategic recommendations from the Kuala Lumpur Creative and Culture District Strategic Master Plan.

Taking lead from other urban creative and culture cities from around the world, creative and culture districts promote participation of people in social equity, benefits sharing and make significant contributions to the national economy.

Today’s allocation signals the revival of national pride, generating a sense of aspiration, that will build on the momentum of Malaysia MADANI growth and building back better for Malaysia. The regeneration of Downtown Kuala Lumpur into a creative and culture destination (tying together heritage assets, cultural attractions and creative enterprises), will be further enhanced by the preservation and rejuvenation of the Dataran Merdeka Heritage Precinct.

The allocation of RM 30 million will accelerate the transformation of Downtown Kuala Lumpur, attracting local and international visitors into the heart of the city, creating creative and culture economic activities and spurring vibrancy in the city. The allocation will also be used to improve the livelihood and liveability of urban poor communities in public housing by empowering them to affect collective action in shaping their place of homes, implement capacity-building programmes, increase awareness and advocate for better policies for sustainable public housing.

We would also like to take this opportunity to extend our gratitude to Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Yayasan Hasanah, as well as our local and international partners, and communities we collaborate with, in working under a common goal of making cities liveable, together.