Malaysia would harness growth in tourism and related services in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2026.
THE government continues to address socio-economic issues across multiple dimensions of development as it works towards improving the rakyat’s well-being and standard of living.
Measures undertaken include ensuring fair wages, availability of decent jobs, equitable access to healthcare and education and improving infrastructure.
As a key element of the Ekonomi Madani manifested in Budget 2026, “Raising the Floor”, would safeguard the rakyat, according to the Economic Outlook 2026.
Emphasis is placed on ensuring a decent standard of living and pathways for the rakyat to move upwards.
For the rakyat to attain improved standards of living, the government would continue to address social economic issues across multiple dimensions of development.
To narrow rural and regional development gaps, the budget would focus on diversifying the landscape beyond traditional economic activities.
It would leverage collaborations between federal and state governments with the private sector as seen in Cyberjaya, Port of Tanjung Pelepas, Kulim Hi-Tech Park, Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park and the Samalaju Industrial Park.
The government would continue to collaborate in developing other strategic locations in the country.
This collaboration serves as an impetus for state level transformation, capitalising the untapped potential for industrial clustering, innovation and inter-state synergies.
Supported by the New Investment Incentive Framework to accelerate the nation’s industrial transformation, the government would continue to provide tailored incentives to attract quality investment and maximise economic returns.
Budget 2026 would focus on further streamlining approval processes, dismantling bureaucratic hurdles and realign incentives with the complexity, value-add and technological intensity of targeted industries.
To further deepen the Asean economic integration, initiatives such as the Asean Power Grid would enhance cross border energy connectivity and security, thereby positioning Malaysia as a regional hub for renewable energy trade.
This enforces Malaysia’s role as a driver of sustainable growth with South-East Asia.
This move accelerates the adoption of digitalisation by expanding access to digital tools, training and eCommerce capability and ensures competitiveness and scalability of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
This fosters an innovation ecosystem that connects MSMEs with technology providers, research institutions and global supply chains.
It helps more firms to participate in international markets while improving productivity.
Malaysia would harness growth in tourism and related services in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2026.
It would focus on progressive visa policies, including extended visa-free entry from selected key markets, maintain and upgrade tourism related infrastructure, enhance public transportation and encourage eco-tourism activities.
Overall, Budget 2026 initiatives would ensure Malaysia’s integration with the global economy remains strategic, competitive, inclusive and future-oriented across all sectors.
In 2024, the Finance Ministry initiated the Government-Linked Enterprises Activation and Reform Program (GEAR-uP) to strengthen strategic investments, innovation and social inclusion in supporting the nation’s economic development agenda.
GEAR-uP had delineated seven “Raise the Floor” initiatives, including one to empower and uplift bumiputra communities and businesses.
Beyond their commercial mandates, the government linked investment companies and government-linked companies also contributed towards the development of sustainable talent and enterprises among bumiputras.
