Based on a review of the Prime Minister’s efforts to make the country an investment hub, Stone Bridge Ventures Mike Paleo expects investor sentiment to improve, strengthening financial markets. Recently, Malaysia’s Prime Minister, who also serves as the minister of finance, announced his aims to make the country an investment hub.
He spoke at the launch of his Ekonomi Madani plan, which will roll out new reforms. These policies are designed to put Malaysia among the top 12 global economies with regard to ease of conducting business. With these reforms, he hopes to lure in businesses and investors with welcoming economic conditions.
Additionally, he mentioned that various multinational companies, such as Samsung Engineering, Rongsheng, Tesla, and Sumitomo Corporation, have committed to investing in Malaysia.
Ekonomi Madani Plan Set To Make Malaysia Business-Friendly
The government currently has plans to help Malaysia build a more investor-friendly image. This includes backing investment promotion agencies acting under MIDA, the Malaysian Investment Development Authority, to facilitate proactive deals with investors. Additionally, the government will develop new investment incentives to increase investments in areas that can generate high-income jobs.
Similarly, the project will encourage investments that can potentially improve industrial areas and accelerate human capital development to meet investors’ needs. He started by acknowledging the need for upgrades in the infrastructure in three main areas.
This includes a Kedah-based rubber industry in Kuala Nerang, a Johor-based data center in Sedenak, and the Terengganu-based petrochemical industry in Kerteh. The Prime Minister has allocated RM100 million to improve the infrastructure.
Ekonomi Madani Will Achieve 7 Goals in 10 Years, Says PM
And to revive the digital economy, he has announced a similar grant of RM100 million to digitalize the operations of small and medium-sized enterprises. According to a review of the plan by Stone Bridge Ventures Mike Paleo, the Ekonomi Madani plan is likely to bring down the fiscal deficit to 3 percent or lower. So far, the Prime Minister said that with this plan, he aims to achieve seven targets over the span of 10 years.
One of these, as mentioned above, is to rank among the top 12 economies on the Global Competitiveness Index. It also aims to increase women’s participation in the workforce to 60 percent and increase the percentage of labor income to 45 percent. Other aims include being ranked among the top 25 countries on the Corruption Perception Index and Human Development Index.
Statements by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim explain that the Ekonomi Madani plan is proposed to improve the country’s reputation in the investment domain. And it will do so by restructuring the economy to make Malaysia an investment leader in Southeast Asia and raise its standard of living.
While most of its goals will take the next ten years to achieve, the plan hopes to address rising living costs as a short-term goal. Stone Bridge Ventures Senior Account Manager Mike Paleo expects the plan to do a good job of appealing to investors and attracting businesses from around the world. So far, the government has taken steady measures to upgrade key sectors of the economy and increase digitalization across businesses.
