Malaysia’s Green Building Index hits a 300 million square feet milestone

21 DECEMBER 2023 – The Green Building Index (GBI) celebrated the achievement of certifying 300 million square feet of sustainable buildings across Malaysia last Tuesday, 12 December 2023 at PAM Centre. This encompassed 671 projects through the 18 rating tools offered by GBI that have been tailored to the local tropical climate, comprising 343 new non-residential buildings, 233 new residential buildings and a smaller number of existing buildings.

The certified projects across Malaysia have collectively led to an estimated annual decrease of 1,749,000 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent (tCO₂e). Since being established in 2009, the GBI has achieved 100 million square feet of certified buildings in 2014 and 150 million square feet in 2016 (click here to read more).  

The event was officiated by YB Tuan Nga Kor Ming, Minister of Local Government Development. He highlighted the nation’s carbon goals: “Greening the buildings in Malaysia with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act 2023 will need to move to a whole-of-nation approach to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 45 per cent across the economy by 2030 and to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.”

Also in attendance was Ar. Abu Zarim Abu Bakar, GBI Board Chairman and President of Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia (PAM); Ar. Dr. Serina Hijjas, GBI Accreditation Panel (GBIAP) Chair cum President of Malaysia Green Building Council (MGBC); other members of GBI Board and GBIAP; and industry practitioners.

“It is essential to note that this 300 million square feet of Gross Floor Area covers only green buildings and does not include the vast expanses of sustainable townships that have also received the coveted certification by GBI,” said Ar. Abu Zarim Abu Bakar. “The efforts of architects, builders, and developers who have embraced green building practices have collectively contributed to this monumental achievement, fostering energy efficiency, improved indoor air quality and reduced carbon emissions in our built environment.”

FuturArc has reached out to the GBI about their future targets in spurring more Green building certification throughout Malaysia.

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