Malaysia Is Right On Track For Vision 2020

obmar · Site Admin Joined: 14 Apr 2006 Posts: 5697

BERNAMA

February 13, 2008 19:13 PM

Malaysia Is Right On Track For Vision 2020

By Ahmad Zahid Hamidi

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 13 (Bernama) -- The highly competitive international socio-economic environment has created numerous challenges in achieving Vision 2020.

And in the remaining 12 years, the challenges in achieving the developed status goal are not going to be any easier.

Maintaining high economic performance and creating maximum impact along with good governance and political stability are among the challenges that Malaysians have to face.

Though Malaysia may be on the right track in making the transition to the league of developed nations as envisaged, efforts to enhance productivity, competitiveness and value in the agriculture, manufacturing and services sector remains pertinent.

VARIOUS EFFORTS

Apart from that, efforts to generate new wealth in the information communication technology (ICT), biotechnology and services industry to must be given emphasis.

However, in the bigger picture, the people's quality of live must rise in tandem with the economic development as stressed by the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

The government's dedicated efforts in eradicating poverty has borne results whereby the per capita income has grown from RM790 in 1957 to RM20,840 in 2006, a whopping 26-fold increase.

The poverty rate too has been reduced. In 1957, about 50 percent of the population lived below the poverty line but now they only represent 6 percent.

The sustained average growth rate of 6 percent, a surplus in the balance of payment for the last nine years and a savings rate of 37 percent of the Gross Domestic Product will certainly help propel Malaysia to greater heights.

STERLING PERFORMANCE

Of late all the economic indicators for the nation's state of economy point to a sterling performance. On Jan 12, 2008, the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index surpassed the 1,500 psychological barrier to finish at 1,516.22 points, the highest since Bursa Saham Kuala Lumpur's inception in 1986.

The value of ringgit also recorded a 10-year high with the exchange rate at RM3.33 to an American Dollar.

The total trade volume surpassed RM1 trillion in 2006, with the RM1.069 trillion figure being the highest recorded in the nation's trading history representing an increase of 10.5 percent compared to the previous year.

The Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) increased to RM20.2 billion in 2006 while the domestic investment increased to RM28.8 billion.

From this total, the manufacturing sector is the biggest benefactor with RM18.5 billion of the total chandelled into the sector. Foreign and local firms are expanding and diversifying their operations in Malaysia that in turn provided more employment opportunities for locals.

On the commodity side, the price of crude palm oil surpassed RM3,000 per tonne in late 2007 due to high demand and this provided big returns for the palm oil industry and smallholders.

Malaysia's export too is on the rise with the export of electrical goods providing returns worth RM281 billion in 2006. The export of agriculture, mineral, petroleum and others showed also pointed towards an upward trend.

The value of Malaysia's capital market also breached the RM1 trillion mark. The nation's capital market is the among the biggest and the most active in Southeast Asia.

All these speak favourably on the international financial community's confidence on Malaysia's economy.

NEW GROWTH CORRIDORS

More than four million new employment opportunities will be made available for the people throughout the nation through the development of growth corridors with each of the corridors providing between 1 and 2 million new employment opportunities.

Malaysia now has five development corridors; the Iskandar Development Region, the Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER), the East Coast Economic Region (ECER), the Sabah Development Corridor and the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE).

Though it was a tough road for Malaysian companies in making inroads into the international markets, yet their resilience and the backing of the government has helped them in many ways.

The writer is Malaysia's Deputy Information Minister.

-- BERNAMA

The Inquisitor · Joined: 17 Jun 2006 Posts: 772

obmar,

Those are some excellent results. It really looks like Malaysia is surfing well on the oceanic wave of economic performance for the Asiatic region.

I will address this part, however:

obmar · Site Admin Joined: 14 Apr 2006 Posts: 5697

so thats the reason for the so many sea divers
in their suits

The Inquisitor · Joined: 17 Jun 2006 Posts: 772

Wow.

I didn't know it reached all the way to Malaysia. I thought it was centered more towards the Middle East and the Mediterranean.

Here is the ship that cut the cable lines (as best as I can surmise):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Jimmy_Carter