If the youth are the future of a nation, how can we bring that hope?
Even before the pandemic hit our shores in 2020, Malaysia was struggling.
In 1991, we had aspirations to become an industrialised nation by 2020, giving birth to Vision 2020 which listed nine challenges the country was to overcome in order to be a prosperous nation.
When Vision 2020 was nowhere close to being achieved, the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 rolled out in 2019 to replace the previous plan. But looking at it now, is the new plan destined to be another aspiration that cannot be accomplished?
It’s with no question that the lack of leadership, political instability, and the fight for power have highly impacted the development of our country throughout the years. With no time to make adjustments for the new plan, our economy suffered losses after losses when the pandemic surfaced, leaving us behind our neighbouring countries. While Indonesia, Singapore, and Vietnam managed to pull in more than 80% of US$156 billion in 2020, Malaysia was only able to capture 5% or the equivalent of US$7.8 billion.
Adding more salt to the wound, Indonesia introduced the Omnibus Law in October 2020 in order to contribute to their economy during this pandemic. Looking at the amount of Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) our neighbouring countries have captured, how can we say that we’re not threatened?
It’s agreeable that making a successful recovery while still in a pandemic crisis is difficult, but while other countries have been competing with each other, we’re only just announcing our long-term recovery plan in October 2021. With that, can we truly say we have a long-term recovery plan?
Here’s another question to ask: Would it be too late? The truth is right there — our long-term recovery is too far from our grasp.
Malaysia, it’s time to stop being dependent. While the government is struggling to fix the economy, we can’t delay our recovery any longer.
We, the youth and future of Malaysia, must continue to grow on our own. And here’s how.