KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan will draw on his vast corporate experience to develop Malaysia's economy and regain its position as a leading economic force within the region in his new role as Finance Minister II.
Amir said he would fully utilise his experience, particularly as Employees Provident Fund (EPF) chief executive officer since March 2021, in efforts to empower the administration of the Finance Ministry.
His main focus would be to assist Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in redeveloping the economy under the Madani framework.
"I am confident that with solid support from all the ministry's officers and related agencies, we can strengthen the economy and rise.
"It is also critical for my team and me to understand the transformation needed to achieve the targets to be set," he said after the swearing-in of new ministers at Istana Negara on Tuesday (Dec 12).
Amir took his oath as a senator on Tuesday morning before Dewan Negara president Tan Sri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar and was later sworn in as one of the five new ministers before Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.
The other four ministers in the reshuffled Cabinet are Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, who returned as Health Minister; Damansara MP Gobind Singh Deo (Digital Minister); Bukit Mertajam MP Sim Chee Keong (Human Resources Minister); and Titiwangsa MP Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani (Plantations and Commodities Minister).
Sim said he will work hard to ensure the welfare of workers is safeguarded, in addition to enhancing productivity, job opportunities, talents and skills to support Malaysia's economic growth.
"I will use my experience as Deputy Finance Minister where we had several policy and fiscal management frameworks to develop the economy through the Madani framework. I will incorporate those aspects in my tasks under this new ministry," he said.
Plantations and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said he needed to think outside the box to lead the ministry, adding that it is a rather challenging portfolio because it is an important component of the country's economy.
"For example, in the context of agriculture in our country, it forms 8.9% of our GDP (gross domestic product), while plantation and commodities account for more than 50% of agriculture's contribution.
"There are a lot of things that I will share with the ministry. This ministry deals with large-scale agriculture, which poses numerous challenges," he said.
Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, who returned as Health Minister, said he will focus on completing the health transformation programme he implemented in the previous administration, which includes digital health transformation and health financing.
"I will address acute care; issues and grievances related to hospitals; patient wait time, and the welfare of medical personnel from contract staff to pharmacy officers. I will also look into preventive and promotive care related to non-communicable diseases (NCD), " he said. – Bernama
