Kulai

This article is about the Malaysian town. For the Indian ward, see Kulai (Suratkal). For the federal constituency represented in the Dewan Rakyat, see Kulai (federal constituency).

Kulai is a town and the capital of Kulai District, Johor, Malaysia. It is administered by the Kulai Municipal Council (MPKu), which was earlier known as the Kulai District Council.

Kulai
Town and district capital
Malay transcription(s)
• Jawi	کولاي‎
Chinese transcription(s)
• Simplified	古来
• Chinese	Gǔlái (Pinyin)
Seal
Nickname(s):  Kulaijaya, The Turtle Town
Motto(s):  Cemerlang, Sejahtera (English: Excellence, Peaceful)
Kulai
Coordinates: 1°40′00″N 103°36′00″E
Country	Malaysia
State	Johor
District	Kulai
Establishment	1890
Municipality status	21 April 2004
Government
• Type	Local Government
• Body	Kulai Municipal Council
• President	Haji Abdul Rahman Salleh
• Kulai Member of Parliament	Teo Nie Ching (DAP)
Population  (within MPKu Control Area)
• Total	230,000
• Rank	29th
Time zone	UTC+8 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	Not observed
Website	www.mpkulai.gov.my

Kulai Municipal Council

Kulai is surveyed as one of the happiest cities in Malaysia in June 2020.

Geography

Kulai Town (Bandar Kulai) in Kulai District

Kulai is located 29 km (18 mi) from Johor Bahru city and 8 km (5.0 mi) from Skudai. It is located in the center of the district. Kulai town and other towns within this district are located along the old trunk road linking Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru. The main road, Federal Route 1, is lined with many retail shops. There are also many housing estates within the township. The town is surrounded by rubber and oil palm estates.

Climate

Kulai has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) with heavy rainfall year-round.

Climate data for Kulai
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	31.1 (88.0)	31.5 (88.7)	31.8 (89.2)	31.8 (89.2)	31.8 (89.2)	31.9 (89.4)	31.6 (88.9)	31.6 (88.9)	31.5 (88.7)	31.4 (88.5)	31.3 (88.3)	31.1 (88.0)	31.5 (88.8)
Daily mean °C (°F)	26.3 (79.3)	26.8 (80.2)	27.1 (80.8)	27.1 (80.8)	27.1 (80.8)	27.2 (81.0)	26.9 (80.4)	26.9 (80.4)	26.8 (80.2)	26.7 (80.1)	26.7 (80.1)	26.6 (79.9)	26.9 (80.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	21.6 (70.9)	22.1 (71.8)	22.4 (72.3)	22.5 (72.5)	22.5 (72.5)	22.5 (72.5)	22.3 (72.1)	22.3 (72.1)	22.2 (72.0)	22.1 (71.8)	22.2 (72.0)	22.1 (71.8)	22.2 (72.0)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	252 (9.9)	189 (7.4)	246 (9.7)	260 (10.2)	241 (9.5)	170 (6.7)	173 (6.8)	228 (9.0)	218 (8.6)	246 (9.7)	273 (10.7)	289 (11.4)	2,785 (109.6)
Source: Climate-Data.org

Economy

The locals are mostly involved in the agriculture sector, particularly in the oil palm and rubber estates surrounding the town. Many of the people work in small retail shops, which are located along the trunk road. Kulai has the first settlement of FELDA's (Federal Land Development Agency) oil palm plantation in the country - FELDA Taib Andak, which was launched by the second Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Abdul Razak. Kulai is still one of the main producers of palm oil in the country due to its numerous oil palm plantations. Kulai also exports fresh vegetables to Singapore on a daily basis.

The economy of Kulai has improved with numerous factories being set up in both Kulai and Senai. There are some public listed companies which have their offices and factories in Kulai, such as Yi-Lai Industry Berhad located in Batu 23 (Jalan Kulai-Air Hitam) ; SCGM Berhad which located in Batu 24 1/2 (Jalan Kulai-Air Hitam) and JCY International Berhad which located in Kelapa Sawit

Kulai is also within the Iskandar Development Region (IDR).

Shopping Centres

• Kulai Centrepoint (Super Cowboy)
• IOI Mall Kulai
• Mydin Mall Kulai Utama
• Aeon Mall Kulaijaya
• Lotus's
• Econsave Putri Kulai
• TJ Mart Saleng
• The Commune (Opening to 2023Q4)
• Mid Valley Southkey

Education

Foon Yew High School Kulai Campus

Foon Yew High School campus of Kulai located in this district to provide Chinese high school education for the local community.

Culture

The Chinese community in Kulai mainly communicate in Hakka Chinese dialects. There are quite a number of Chinese temples to fulfill the religious needs of the local Chinese community, like Wan Xian Miao Temple (古来萬仙廟) (founded in 1913), Hong Sen Tai Tee Old Temple (古来新港洪仙大帝古廟) (founded in 1891), Yuen Sun Kung Temple (古来云山宫) (founded in 1933) and several other temples. Prominent Temples like Hua Guo Shan Temple (士年纳路口花果山) and Kulai Putuo Village (古来普陀村) are also tourist attraction spots.

There are also several churches in Kulai include the Presbyterian Church(SYNOD), Christ the King Catholic Church, Baptist Church, Methodist Church and churches of other denominations. The Masjid Jamek is located within Kulai town and serve the needs of the Muslim community.

Transportation

Kulai Bus Terminal

Kulai was an important stopover on the Johor Bahru–Kuala Lumpur trunk road in the 1970s and 1980s until the North–South Expressway opened in 1994, which bypassed the town. The trunk road is now identified as Road One. Senai Airport, the international airport which serves Johor is within the municipality. Kulai railway station located nearby the trunk road and served by KTM Intercity Gemas-JB Sentral shuttle train.

Notable residents

• Mawi – the winner of the 2005 Akademi Fantasia singing competition and now becomes among the most popular Malaysian singer, from FELDA Taib Andak.
• Penny Tai – popular female singer and the winner of Best Composer (爱疯了) at Taiwanese Golden Melody Awards 2006 (金曲奖).
• Firdhaus Farmizi – singer-songwriter
• jep sepahtu - comedian in malaysia, from kampung melayu kulai