The government said today it has held talks with Disney representatives on building Southeast Asia's first Disneyland theme park in Johor.

Cabinet minister Effendi Norwawi said Malaysia was also talking to other theme park operators as part of plans to develop the state which lies next to Singapore.

"We are exploring all our options, including this (Disneyland)," he told the official Bernama news agency, adding that the planned development in Johor would be wide-ranging.

"This will include theme park and other attractions," he said, adding that talks had already been held with Disneyland representatives from Japan and the United States.

"We are also discussing with several other parties to get the best option," he said.

Boost for tourism

Newspaper reports have said that government officials and representatives from conglomerate UEM World are negotiating with Oriental Land, the Japanese partner of Tokyo Disneyland, to build the first Disney theme park to Southeast Asia.

A Disney theme park would be a major boost for the tourism industry in Malaysia, which competes with Singapore to attract visitors.

According to The Edge financial daily, the theme park will be sited at Bandar Nusajaya, UEM's 23,000-acre township on the southwestern tip of Johor.

It said the Disney theme park would be bigger than the two casino-based resorts being planned in Singapore.