PARLIAMENT Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Chua Tee Yong has denied that China-backed projects in Malaysia would not open up job opportunities for Malaysians.

He cited a steel mill project in the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park (MCKIP) by Alliance Steel (M) Sdn Bhd, a wholly-owned Malaysian subsidiary of China’s Guangxi Beibu Gulf Iron and Steel Investment Co Ltd.

"This project, for example, will open 3,648 job opportunities. An estimated 53 percent of jobs will be opened specifically for Malaysians," he told the Dewan Rakyat today.

He was responding to opposition leader Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (PKR-Permatang Pauh) who alleged that most job opportunities from China-backed investments in Malaysia were going to Chinese nationals

Chua said that employment opportunities for Malaysians was one of the stipulations for foreign companies to launch projects here, especially those applying for incentives from the government.

China has become a major investor in Malaysia, taking part in projects such as the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) and Forest City in Iskandar, Johor.

Chinese firms have also purchased stakes in Bandar Malaysia, as well as Edra Global Energy, assets that 1MDB was trying to monetise to cover its debts.

Critics have raised concerns that Malaysia's interests were being sold to China in exchange for financial backing.