At the inaugural Brunei Darussalam-Malaysia Joint Committee for Cooperation in the Field of Transport (BMJCT) on October 8, 2025, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Transport and Infocommunications (MTIC), Ir Mohammad Nazri Mohammad Yusof, emphasized how close bilateral cooperation enhanced movement of people and trade. All parties present at BMJCT commended past bilateral efforts on transport modernization such as the Air Services Agreement in 2023, connectivity by sea transport through the Serasa-Labuan RO-RO and ferry, and land transport through infrastructure improvement. Moreover, the BMJCT endorsed the newly drafted Terms of Reference and its Work Plan for 2026, guiding the Committee and its members in the implementation of the objectives of a new MoU.
Previously, cooperation was ad hoc, via ASEAN or the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA). With the permanent Joint Committee set up and a 2026 Work Plan, mechanisms are now formalized for implementation. Covered topics include technology, logistics, and people movement, beyond the usual scope of air, sea, and land transport. Enhanced cross-border logistical cooperation provides opportunities for the Governments of Brunei and Malaysia to more smoothly facilitate regional trade.
Brunei is also seeking to be a more prominent logistics hub within BIMP-EAGA, while benefitting from trade within ASEAN. This national initiative dovetails nicely with enhanced commercial activity and development across Borneo as a whole, with the increasing commercial prominence of East Malaysian States, and Indonesia’s efforts to construct its new capital, Nusantara in Kalimantan province. Brunei’s central location amid an increasingly economically active Borneo provides foreign suppliers with great opportunities for the transport of materials into the region.
