Many Southeast Asian countries have adopted the Export-Oriented Industrialization (EOI) policy and have promoted inward foreign direct investment. Several foreign-affiliated companies in the manufacturing industry have established their factories at industrial estates in Southeast Asia since the 1960's. Here, I mention Malaysia in particular because it is one of the most successful countries to have implemented EOI, and has also built industrial estates throughout the country for the purpose of accepting increased foreign direct investment. When we discuss industrial estate development in Malaysia, it is vital to employ a four-pronged analysis that considers industrial development, regional development, export orientation, and employment creation. From the perspective of economic growth, industrial estates have played an important role in industrial development and export orientation. Industrialization in Malaysia has been highly influenced by foreign-affiliated companies, many of them belonging to the electric and electronics industries, which help to support the export industry. The Malaysian government encouraged foreign companies to build their factories in industrial estates by offering attractive investment incentives. With the national poverty eradication and social reorganization aims in the 1970's, both regional development and employment creation were urgently required. Industrial estate development was a tool of the industrial dispersal policy, and factories situated at industrial estates were expected to increase employment in the lessdeveloped areas or rural areas. Although total job creation has increased to date, regional imbalances, particularly in the manufacturing industry, have not yet been resolved. Industrialization and economic growth have increased proportionally with the development of industrial estates in Malaysia. However, an oversupply of industrial property has become a serious problem. Upon the introduction of a privatisation policy in the 1980's, many private developers have partic