Malaysia needs to strengthen its redistribution system to enable wealth and public funds to be utilised well, said Secretariat of the Special Advisory Body to the Finance Minister co-chair Nurul Izzah Anwar.
Therefore, she said, certain functions need to be visited and reviewed from time to time to ensure they meet the target objectives.
Citing an example, she said fuel subsidies have been proven regressive and counterproductive.
“We spent RM52 billion just last year burning fuel. That is 74 percent of our total subsidies, translating to 2.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
“Contrast this to our expenditure on healthcare operating costs, amounting to only 1.7 percent of the GDP during the same period. Imagine the substantial loss in opportunity cost to fuel subsidies,” Nurul Izzah said in her keynote address at the Youth Economic Forum 2023 today.
She said as Malaysia heads towards having an ageing population, more investment in social protection is needed to adequately prepare the country with the best healthcare system so that future youth would not be burdened to bear the costs.
The Youth Economic Forum is organised by the Perdana Fellows Alumni Association as a platform for the young generation to engage with the government, private sector and international organisations.
- Bernama
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