Malaysian entrepreneurs are told to establish joint-venture firms with their Chinese counterparts to tap into the business opportunities brought about by the Malaysian Economic Transformation Program (ETP).

Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin made the remarks on Tuesday after opening the Second World Chinese Economic Forum on behalf of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Muhyiddin said that the Malaysian government has adopted business-friendly policies by granting incentives and putting in place all necessary mechanisms to provide impetus for economic development.

All the Malaysian government has to do now is to motivate the private sector in Malaysia to play their role, including raising the investment level, said Muhyiddin.

Malaysia is a multi-racial country made up by three main races, namely the Malay, Chinese and Indian.

However, Muhyiddin said that all entrepreneurs, regardless of race and ethnicity, were encouraged to establish collaboration with entrepreneurs from China as long as the fields with vast development potential had been determined.

Muhyiddin stressed that China was a major trade partner and investment destination of Malaysia, and the large capital inflows from the Chinese government and China's private sector into Malaysia were important for the country.

The ETP is one of the initiatives announced by the Malaysian government to help transform the nation into a high-income developed country by 2020.

A total of 12 National Key Economic Areas (NKEA), including oil, gas and energy; palm oil; financial services; tourism; as well as electrical and electronics, have been identified in the ETP.

While a total investments of 444 billion U.S. dollars is required to attain the goal, the Malaysian government said that 92 percent of the investments comes from the private sector.

Muhyiddin said that at the initial stage, more than 130 development projects would be implemented, and therefore, investors, both domestic and foreign, should grab the opportunities to invest in Malaysia.