Ensure policy continuity after Rafizi’s exit, says trade group

Ensure policy continuity after Rafizi’s exit, says trade group

PETALING JAYA: The Small and Medium Enterprises Association of Malaysia (Samenta) has urged the government to ensure continuity in economic policies and commitment to long-term reforms following the resignation of economy minister Rafizi Ramli.

With the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) being finalised, Samenta chairman William Ng warned that the country risked missing out on yet another economic cycle if key reforms outlined in the plan were not retained and fully implemented.

“The 13MP must not be seen as the vision of a single minister. It is a national blueprint born out of broad consultations and urgent necessity,” said Ng in a statement.

He said Malaysia fell behind regional peers due to a failure to act decisively on fundamental economic challenges, particularly in education, productivity and competitiveness.

While the final version of the 13MP had yet to be released, he said, Samenta had submitted its feedback with a particular focus on addressing these long-standing issues.

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“We commend Rafizi and the team at the economy ministry for taking a data-driven and consultative approach in formulating the 13MP.

Ng named three main hurdles to boosting Malaysia’s competitiveness, namely an outdated education system that failed to prepare graduates for the job market, low workforce productivity and structural obstacles to the growth of SMEs.

“SMEs represent 97% of businesses and over seven million jobs in Malaysia. Yet very few of our SMEs grow to become regional champions. If the 13MP is to be meaningful, it must provide a clear pathway for our enterprises to grow,” he said.

He said Malaysia’s growth depended not only on sound policies but also on political will to tackle deep-rooted structural challenges.

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Ng also said it was important to tie incentives to performance metrics such as productivity improvements, export growth or carbon reduction.

“We have to stop handing out money just for activities. Incentives must be tied to performance metrics – be it productivity gains, export growth or carbon reduction, for example.

“The 13MP may very well be our last real chance to become a truly high-income, innovation-driven economy. We cannot afford to keep revisiting the same challenges every five years,” he said.

Rafizi resigned as the economy minister earlier today following his defeat to Nurul Izzah Anwar in the race for the PKR deputy president’s post.

The Pandan MP said his final responsibility as economy minister was to complete the 13MP, which will be tabled in Parliament in the upcoming session from July 21 to Aug 28.

He said the 13MP was drafted to place greater emphasis on comprehensive reforms, including several involving the education ministry.