Where did RM7.2bil in consultancy fees go to?

What can RM7.2 billion buy?

Going by figures in the 2012 and 2014 Budget speeches, this could pay for Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia handouts to benefit a whopping 13.1 million people.

However, from 2009 till October 2013, the government spent exactly that amount to pay for private consultants, a written reply to Parliament has revealed.

The written reply to PKR's Kelana Jaya MP Wong Chen (left) does not state who these consultants are and what they were paid for.

This action of the government in outsourcing policy work to consultants is not entirely new.

Top consultancy firm McKinsey said it has "advised the Malaysian govermment on public policy and economic development since the mid-1980s", including on the Multimedia Super Corridor project.

"And today, we continue to advise the government on critical strategies for growth and competitiveness, for example high technology, logistics or education," McKinsey says on its website. 

At RM7.2 billion, however, it appears that the administration of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is taking the outsourcing trend a notch higher.

One big winner under the Najib administration is Frost and Sullivan which, according to its website, is making Malaysia its biggest growth focus in the Asia Pacific region.

'100 consultants in three years'

The Frost and Sullivan website advertises a long list of jobs available at its Malaysian offices - mostly in consulting for government in the Iskandar region - but has only six jobs on offer for the rest of Asia Pacific.

Established in Kuala Lumpur in 2010 with a handful of employees, its Kuala Lumpur office today boasts 100 consultants who serve 18 countries in the region.

According to technology news portal Digital News Asia, Frost and Sullivan counts the following government agencies and government-linked companies as clients:

• Iskandar Regional Development Authority (Irda)
• Malaysian Investment Development Authority
• Malaysia Development Corporation
• Mimos Bhd
• Malaysia Devt Ventures Bhd
• DRB-Hicom
• Telekom Malaysia
• Sime Darby
• Felda Holdings

Frost and Sullivan is not the only consulting company, foreign or local, riding the Malaysian government outsourcing gravy train.

Below is a list of consulting firms that list the Malaysian government as their client, based publicly-available information.

This information is non-exhaustive and does not scratch the surface of the RM7.2 billion bill - but it can still serve as a taster of what it was used for:

1. McKinsey and Co

• Setting up of the Performance and Management Delivery Unit (Pemandu), 2009 - RM36 million.
• National Education Blueprint, 2012 - RM20 million.
• Grooming mid-tier companies via Agensi Inovasi Malaysia 2012-2013 - RM36 million.

2. Hay Group

• Setting up Pemandu, 2009 - RM11 million.

3. Ethos & Co

• Setting up Pemandu, 2009 - RM1.5 million.

4. Alpha Platform (M) Sdn Bhd

• Setting up Pemandu, 2009 - RM1.5 million.

5. An "external consultant" named "Tarmidizi"

• Setting up Pemandu, 2009 - RM3 million.

6. Boston Consulting Group

• Setting up Pemandu and facilitating the Economic Transformation Programme labs, 2009 - cost unknown.
• Study on funds disbursement in the public sector via Special Innovation Unit (Unik), 2010 - cost unknown.
• Survey on free trade agreements for the Ministry of International Trade and Investment, 2013 - cost unknown.

7. Provectis

• Setting up Pemandu and facilitating the Economic Transformation Programme labs, 2009 - cost unknown.

8. Apco Worldwide

• Boosting Malaysia's international image, 2009-2010 - RM76.8 million.
• Anti-Anwar Ibrahim propaganda (jointly commissioned with FBC Media), 2008-2011 -RM1.2 million.

9. FBC Media

• Boosting Malaysia's international image 2007-2010 - RM84 million.

10. Brighton Education Group, British Council and SM HR Group

• English mentoring programme to raise standards of English language in national schools, 2010-2013 - RM270 million.

11. PA Consulting Group

• Assisted the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) in developing energy policy for the 10th Malaysia Plan - year and cost unknown.

12. Vision Technology Computing

• Assisted Pemandu in developing the Key Performance Indicator reporting system - year and cost unknown.

13. Alpha Catalyst Consulting

• National innovation strategy study via Unik, 2011 - cost unknown.