GEORGE TOWN – Malaysia needs to shift away from its reliance on raw material exports and foreign direct investments (FDI) and focus on building its capacity in high-tech industries to grow its economy, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today.
The two-time former prime minister said the nation can no longer rely on its previous growth model that was reliant on FDI that helped develop its industries, as other nations are now offering cheaper labour and better tax incentives.
While Malaysia is the world’s biggest supplier of rubber gloves, Dr Mahathir said the nation missed the opportunity to develop other value-added products from the abundant local supply of rubber.
“We made tyres for motor vehicles. But we supply only a small number. Perhaps the quality does not meet the special need of tyres for different use. But we can set up big research laboratories,” he said in a post on his blog.
“But besides tyres, there are hundreds of rubber products which sell by the millions. We need to go into them in a big way.”
Dr Mahathir said the country should also do the same with palm oil, while also ramping up its capacity in manufacturing and less traditional areas such as robotics and other industries where Malaysia may not produce the raw materials.
“We can import the raw materials or the parts and components and re-export them as finished products. The most important thing is to go big,” he said, adding that corporations built from these ventures must be wholly or majority owned locally.
“If we go into big industries and dominate the market, much of the returns will accrue to Malaysia. We can still cater for foreign direct investments but we will not be dependent on them for the growth of our industries and economy.” – The Vibes, April 8, 2022
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