For decades, Malaysia’s economic landscape has predominantly centered around consumption. Businesses primarily thrived on trading, leaning heavily on imports rather than promoting indigenous technologies and products. Such a scenario, while adequate for certain economic cycles, unfortunately positions Malaysia more as a Consumer Nation. But there’s a compelling case for a shift — towards Malaysia becoming a Producer Nation.
The Imperative Shift to Production
Being a Consumer Nation has its implications. For one, an economy built predominantly on trade is vulnerable to global market fluctuations. More critically, this model relies on low-wage, labor-intensive sectors, suppressing the average salaries and inhibiting the potential of the nation’s youth. The vision? Transitioning Malaysia into a Producer Nation, sparking innovation, and elevating salaries, especially for the younger demographic.
Championing Local Innovation
For Malaysia to rise as a global competitor, recognizing and harnessing local talent is paramount. By nurturing a nationalistic approach, there’s a significant opportunity to prioritize and purchase local products. It’s a two-fold win: boosting national pride and ensuring economic circulation within the country.
However, this ‘buy local’ sentiment should not be at the expense of quality. Local products and technologies must either match or surpass international standards. They should be solutions to local problems and, more importantly, be competitive globally. Such an approach will catalyze R&D activities within the country, sowing seeds for long-term technological advancement.
Cultivating High-Tech Talent
Central to this transformation is the cultivation of high-tech talent. As local companies burgeon, carving out niches and creating indigenous products, the demand for specialized skills will rise. Universities play a pivotal role here. With product roadmaps expanding to tackle new challenges, businesses will increasingly rely on academic institutions for R&D support.
Rather than producing generic graduates, educational institutions should pivot their curriculum to match industry requirements. This alignment ensures that fresh graduates are not only in demand but also command better salaries, fostering economic growth.
Government’s Role: Breaking the Cycle
Transitioning from a consumer-driven economy to a producer-led one is no small feat. It requires substantial intervention, foresight, and continuous policy reinforcement. Irrespective of political shifts, a consistent vision is crucial.
The recent introduction of the MySTI Certified logo, which prioritizes local products and technology in government procurement, is a commendable step in this direction. While its long-term impact remains to be seen, early success stories can lay the foundation, inspire confidence, and rally industry players around this national vision.
In Conclusion
Becoming a producer nation is neither a quick fix nor a short journey. It’s a comprehensive reimagining of Malaysia’s economic fabric. But with strategic investments in innovation, technology, and education — coupled with the determination to prioritize local talent and products — Malaysia can pave the way for a prosperous future where innovation thrives and salaries soar.
Dr. Mazlan, we agreed with your sharings and thoughts, to be a real high tech and true higher income nation, all those inventions that have patent or patents granted, need to be under the microscope slides first of the respective functional goverment sectors, to fully support and groom these world class invetions and inventors that can be easily and readily for commercialization, rather than, looking into those emerging ideas that don’t even have patent application as yet or their patent ia pending be it from local patent office MyIPO or from USPO and EPO etc. This main focus and grooming for real invention with patent granted invention will faster accelerates the life cycle into new products or services into commercialisation and monetization of these brand new products & services for the market. Next after these focus then only can look and groom those who have filed patent and its pending invention. Most ideas without patent is not so useful as others people can easily copy it and steal the IP (Intellectual Property). So respevtive goverment bodies must know where to took for those real brilliant ideas to bring them into the market and to prosper the nation from all these inventor’s intellectual properties.
Thanks for your insights Leong