KUALA LUMPUR: The World Bank has outlined three key areas Malaysia should focus on to strengthen its long-term economic position amid current global challenges arising from the West Asia conflict.
World Bank Malaysia lead economist Dr Apurva Sanghi said the government should use the crisis to "seize some of the opportunities” emerging from the current environment, while continuing to manage immediate pressures.
"One, accelerate a smart energy transition,” he advised, stressing that efforts should go beyond electric vehicles to include renewable energy and storage, "otherwise you just shift a little from oil to electricity.”
"Two, Malaysia can become a regional tourism hub,” noting that "stronger infrastructure, connectivity and positioning would be needed to support this ambition,” he said at the Forum Ilmuan Malaysia Madani here today.
Thirdly, he said Malaysia should position itself to capture capital flows and develop wealth management, noting that this would require improvements in financial infrastructure.
He added that these areas represent longer-term opportunities that Malaysia can build on, even as the government focuses on managing the immediate impact from global uncertainties. - Bernama
