Image credit: CNN
KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 24): The Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) has welcomed Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's appointment as the new prime minister, and expressed hope that the new government will cultivate a business-friendly regulatory environment to ensure ease of doing business.
"The business community looks forward to the able and competent leadership of [Anwar] and his soon-to-be-formed Cabinet to steer Malaysia's economy, and in particular the business sector, to the road of recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and the current global economic challenges.
"We look forward to the expeditious formation of the Cabinet to ensure that all necessary measures and policies are put in place quickly including Budget 2023 to assist the economic sectors and the rakyat in this challenging period," FMM president Tan Sri Soh Thian Lai said in a statement.
Soh said a business-friendly regulatory environment can only be achieved if policies and regulations are "simple, more transparent, reliable, easy to comply, consistent and fair".
He added that policies implemented towards aiding the recovery of businesses and revival of the economy were based on four key policy principles: credibility, clarity, consistency and certainty.
Soh also stressed that it is important for the government to strengthen economic fundamentals including lowering the cost of doing business, which he said is a major obstacle to business recovery.
"Fundamental to the business community is the need to restore the confidence level of both foreign and domestic investors by focusing on the right policies, strengthening the capital market and ensuring the stability of the ringgit," he added.
Expressing a similar view, the Small and Medium Enterprises Association (Samenta) has called on the new government to introduce good governance and good regulatory practice to rebuild confidence among foreign and domestic investors that Malaysia is a rule-based transparent economy driven by integrity and hard work.
Samenta chairman Datuk William Ng said in a statement that the government should give priority to lifting Malaysia out of the middle-income trap by focusing on industries and sectors in which the country has a distinct advantage, while building on a strong small and medium enterprise (SME) ecosystem to support those sectors.
Ng also urged the government to re-balance the role of government-linked corporations in supporting the nation's economic growth and the socio-economic agenda to uplift marginalised groups, without unnecessarily stifling competition and choice.
"As Malaysia's oldest and largest association for SMEs, Samenta remains committed to supporting the government of the day in protecting the interests of our one million SMEs, and the sustainability of our economy," he added.
Source: https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/fmm-samenta-applaud-anwars-appointment-urge-new-govt-revitalise-economy