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Free Malaysia Today
5 days ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
13th Malaysia Plan: a five-year plan we can no longer afford?
Following the release of the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), costing in excess of RM430 billion, we are compelled to ask if this top-down economic ritual is still relevant, or merely a bureaucratic relic pretending to serve the national interest? In 1966, when the First Malaysia Plan was tabled, this Soviet-style, command-and-control planning model may have made sense. Back then, Malaysia was largely agrarian. Export revenues were modest, and central planning filled a vacuum in private sector capacity. The government was expected to build basic infrastructure, provide essential amenities, engineer industrialisation, and open up new sectors — because no one else could. But this is 2025, not 1965. Digital economy Today's economy is digital, decentralised, and shaped by global headwinds beyond Putrajaya's reach. Yet we continue to believe that a group of civil servants, often disconnected from market realities, can forecast and dictate the next five years of our national economy, and that disruptions won't happen. It appears the 13MP authors can't recognise that AI will displace jobs, energy economics will render fossil fuels irrelevant, or that global trade routes can shift overnight. This is not just outdated thinking. It is dangerous. The 11MP, for instance, had proposed the Kulim International Airport (KXP) as a northern aviation base. KXP had the potential to create a centralised logistics hub, displace the poorly located Penang International Airport, and unlock new value in the under-developed northern central corridor of Perak, Seberang Perai, Kedah and Perlis. It could have redirected federal investment away from the costly three-island reclamation scheme into a booming industrial park centred in Kulim — a growth centre the northern region actually needs. Winner takes all Once freed from airport operations, Bayan Lepas land could have been repurposed into high-value real estate, without Penang Island having to spend billions reclaiming artificial land from the sea. But that did not happen. The KXP project became mired in political turf wars, opaque interests, and patronage games. It never took off. In Malaysia's winner-takes-all policymaking, billions are now being spent on Penang's land reclamation, airport expansion, an over-glorified Penang LRT with doubtful ridership, and pan-island expressways that serve elite developers more than the rakyat. The result? Over RM50 billion committed to mega projects that was never assessed objectively or justified by any rigorous transport demand study. No cost-benefit analysis. No economic sense. Just legacy politics and contracts to be handed out. This is precisely why five-year plans have lost their credibility. Too often, they've been hijacked by vested interests and reduced to glossy policy documents stuffed with buzzwords — while real, measurable impact is nowhere to be found. Political theatre The modern economy doesn't wait five years. The AI, electric vehicle, hydrogen energy, and quantum computing sectors are evolving every quarter. Even small businesses now operate on agile models, revolving continuously around market signals rather than fixed timelines. Yet here we are, clinging to a static planning tool, more useful for political theatre than economic direction. And what about Sabah and Kelantan? What do they get? These two poorest states in the country still lack clean water supply and decent road infrastructure. Except for a small water treatment plant in Machang, Kelantan, the 13MP makes no attempt to provide clean water across all 1.2 million households in Kelantan. Why are they still waiting for basic services while others enjoy LRT trains they don't need and expanded airports they barely use? Where is the national equity in all of this? Where is the plan to reduce electricity tariffs by leveraging locally generated renewable energy, instead of sustaining costly and outdated fossil-fuel infrastructure? Why do many households in Sabah — an oil and gas producing state — still lack clean water and round-the-clock electricity supply? A better way forward If Putrajaya is serious, Malaysia needs to abandon ceremonial planning and adopt a rolling economic model: quarterly recalibrations, real-time data monitoring, adaptive fiscal allocations, and public scorecards showing what was promised versus delivered. Even Rafizi Ramli has expressed concern that the 13MP is overloaded with mega projects and is thin on policy reforms. In truth, we persist with five-year plans not because they work, but because they are a tradition or a ritual. Or more aptly, a political placeholder. The real question isn't whether we can afford a five-year plan. It's whether we can afford another RM430 billion of debt. As opposition leader Hamzah Zainudin rightly asked in Parliament on Monday: 'Where is the money going to come from? Do we borrow more? Tax more? Print more?' Or will we simply leave the next administration to clean up the fiscal mess once this one is done parading its plan? Perhaps that's Hamzah's real concern. If the baton passes to him after GE16, he inherits the debt, not the headlines. The author can be reached at: [email protected] The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.
Irish Times
21-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on national economic planning: strategy must be recession-proof
National economic planning always involves dealing with significant uncertainties. Ireland's economy has been upended on a number of occasions, requiring sharp changes in policy direction, most notably during the financial crisis which hit after 2008. So a key test of the revised National Development Plan due to be unveiled today will be its resilience. Inevitably a change in economic circumstances will mean that flexibility is needed in any plan, but are the broad goals of what will be outlined achievable, even if the economy is hit by some kind of slowdown, or even a downturn? Some lessons have been learned in the management of the public finances, with cash being put aside in two funds for the future and the annual figures being kept in surplus. That said, decisions have been made much easier by a big surge in corporation tax. And this has allowed the Government to increase day-to-day, or current, spending rapidly, alongside higher capital investment. To leave sufficent leeway, further growth in State capital investment has to be married with tighter control of current spending. Hints on the strategy here may be contained in the Summer Economic Statement, also due for release today. And in the years ahead more tax revenues are also going to be needed. The Irish tax base is increasingly reliant on potentially transient corporate tax receipts and on income tax paid by middle and higher earners. READ MORE The key immediate uncertainty in national planning comes, of course, from the new US policies on trade. Significant financial buffers are needed to deal with the potential fall-out here and its implications for growth and tax revenue in the short term. Ireland cannot go back to a situation where it is forced to slash State investment to balance the books, as happened after the financial crash. The State is still paying the cost of that today through massive deficiencies in housing and other infrastructure. Strong economic growth and high immigration have added to the pressures. Delivery is also vital, of course . Ireland's slow progress on major investment projects has cast doubts over economic growth prospects, potentially hampering investment. Dealing with this is a key social, as well as economic, priority. The outlook may be seriously affected by what happens between the EU and the US in trade talks over the coming weeks. Whatever transpires, it is fair to assume that significant uncertainty will remain for a prolonged period of time. And that this will raise questions about Ireland's economic model and how it needs to adjust. More investment in key infrastructure is a vital part of the answer. As we consider how this is to be paid for, we can only hope that the impact of Trump's trade policies, while certain to be serious, does not become hugely disruptive.
South China Morning Post
20-06-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Facing multiple crises, China is stressing resilient governance over ideology
Chinese President Xi Jinping recently commemorated the 120th birth anniversary of Chen Yun, one of the foundational economic planners of the Communist Party of China. Amid the commemoration's celebratory tone, Xi's speech signals a rhetorical shift. The references to communist conviction so prominent in the 2015 address delivered for Chen's 110th birthday were relatively sparse in Xi's remarks from earlier this month. Instead, there was polished language relating to development planning and political resilience. In 2015, Xi's speech commemorating Chen Yun's 110th birthday emphasised unwavering faith in Marxism and communism. Xi also spoke of Chen as a disciplined party member. The between-the-lines message was clear: ideology was to be re-centred as the Communist Party's main source of legitimacy during Xi's first term. This year, Xi portrayed Chen as a model of disciplined governance, praising his ability to grasp key points, set aside time to consider strategic issues and simultaneously balance state-led and market approaches to economic planning. Xi highlighted Chen's 15-character maxim – 'not following superiors and not following books but instead following facts while exchanging, comparing and repeating' – offering it as a guide for cadres navigating today's volatile world. The symbolism is clear: Chen was not just a revolutionary elder but a technocrat who embraced policy logic in uncertain times.
South China Morning Post
14-06-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Xi urges Communist Party to learn from pioneer of China's economic planning
Chinese President Xi Jinping urged the ruling Communist Party to learn from the legacy of early party figure Chen Yun – a pioneer of China's economic planning – in remarks on Friday to commemorate the 120th anniversary of the late statesman's birth. Advertisement Xi called on the party to have unwavering confidence when facing 'chaotic and complex turbulence', and to strengthen its ability to cut a path for China's economy with 'objective and thorough' research, according to state news agency Xinhua. The party is preparing for an annual conclave, to be held later this year, focusing on the next five-year plan covering 2026–2030 . The national economic development plan will serve as a blueprint to sharpen China's competitive edge and address weak links exposed in its rivalry with the United States. Xi made the remarks at a meeting in Beijing to mark the anniversary of Chen's birth in 1905. China's ruling party typically commemorates the birthdays of revolutionary elders every 10 years. Modern leaders often weave their policy priorities into their commemoration speeches as a way to rally the party and draw inspiration from the elder statesman's political legacy. Advertisement
Bloomberg
10-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Ireland Needs Fiscal Rule as Economic Risk Grows, Watchdog Warns
The Irish government should commit to a domestic fiscal rule so it can better plan spending as the economy enters uncertain territory, the state's fiscal watchdog warned. A global trade war stoked by US President Donald Trump is likely to have an outsized impact on Ireland, the strategic tax base for several multinational firms. Sticking to a fiscal rule would set a sustainable growth rate for spending net of tax changes, the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council said in its June fiscal assessment report.
