Govt officials crunching numbers to assess the impact of the lockdown that began on June 1 on the economy

by NUR HANANI AZMAN / pic by TMR FILE

THE 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) is in the final stage, where it aims to rebuild Malaysia from the pandemic, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Economic Affairs) Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed (picture).

“At the moment, our officials are crunching the numbers to assess the impact of the lockdown that began on June 1 on the Malaysian economy.

“If the government’s measures, including rapid vaccination and lockdowns, accompanied by strict observance of standard operating procedures are successful in reducing the number of cases, Malaysia can look forward to a strong economic recovery in the fourth quarter of this year (4Q21),” he said in his official address at the launch of the 24th Malaysia Economic Monitor: Weathering the Surge yesterday.

Mustapa said the government took note of the World Bank’s revised projected GDP growth to 4.5% this year, which is lower than the government’s official estimates of between 6% and 7.5%.

“The Malaysian economy was on a solid recovery trajectory before May 2021 with a much-improved real GDP growth performance of -0.5%, in 1Q21 and a strong rebound in a number of economic indicators,” he said, noting the impact of Covid’s resurgence and lockdowns.

“The rate of vaccinations is of course critical in reducing the number of infections and in reviving the economy,” he added.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar said the recommendation by the World Bank matches Malaysia’s strategy to upgrade scientific research capability as envisioned in the 10:10 Science Technology Innovation and Economy framework.

Khairy, who is also the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme Coordinating Minister, said this includes the plan to implement a national vaccine roadmap.

“Malaysians need to acquire the ability to produce test kits and successfully conduct research on vaccines and perform clinical trials to complement our local capabilities. International cooperation that can increase knowledge and technology adoption can further our goals in the medium to long term,” he added.

The government is confident of administering 11 million doses in July, 13 million doses by the end of August and a further eight million doses by the end of September.