PM: We have much to do
The Star – 28/4/2006
KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi touched on a wide range of issues when he wound up the debate on the Ninth Malaysia Plan.  
During his three-hour speech, the Prime Minister spoke about the Government's efforts to control inflation, eradicate poverty and how Islam Hadhari could be the future vision for Malaysians to face the world’s challenges collectively.  
Here are some of the areas on which he spoke:  
  Overall Outlook:  
The country’s economy had expanded by a healthy 6.2% per year in spite of the uncertain global economic outlook, Abdullah said.  
The country’s gross domestic product, based on the purchasing power parity, had increased to US$10,318 (RM37,000) last year.   
This was higher than some countries which were regarded as developed countries, he said.  
He said the people’s standard of living had reached a stage that all could be proud of.  
The Malaysian life quality index had risen by 10.9% from 1990 to 2004, while the lifespan of Malaysians was on par with the developed countries at 70.6 years for men and 76.4 years for women.  
“I will not deny that we have more work to do to make Malaysia a developed nation, including improving the quality of the human capital, creativity and innovation, productivity and in protecting the environment.  
“That’s why I launched a National Mission to concentrate our efforts,” he said.  
  Controlling Inflation:  
The national inflation rate was under control and stable when compared with other countries, despite continuously increasing oil prices, Abdullah said.   
“The Government will continue to implement its plans to control inflation, like ensuring that the price of petroleum products will not be raised again this year, although God knows what the world oil prices will be in the future, monitor the prices of goods and services, ensuring that adequate supplies are available and promoting the thrifty habit among the people especially in the usage of petroleum products.”  
Abdullah said several long-term measures would be implemented to ensure that the inflation rate was low.  
  
Empowering the agriculture sector:  
A holistic process on the development of the agriculture industry would be implemented in the production, processing and marketing of agriculture products, Abdullah said.  
More efforts would be made to encourage farmers to use modern techniques such as biotechnology and Information and Communication Technology techniques, he said.  
The Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry Ministry will implement the “Agriculture Development Clusters Areas” programme in which idle land will be used to grow and produce food products.  
“The Government targets to rehabilitate 103,000ha of land for this purpose under the Plan.”   
Privatisation:  
The national privatisation programmes had been found to be successful, the Prime Minister said.  
“Procedures and terms of agreement will be improved. The choice of concessionaires for privatisation projects will be implemented through the bidding system.”  
The Prime Minister said he had also asked government-linked companies (GLCs) to factor in everything before embarking on projects to ensure that they were viable.  
Poverty eradication:  
There would be poverty eradication, social restructuring and regional development programmes aimed at increasing the income of low salary earners to ensure that they moved into the middle class, he said.  
A national database to integrate information on poverty, both in urban and rural areas, would be set up, he said, adding that the database would contain details on target groups like single parents, poor, senior citizens and the handicapped.  
 Islam Hadhari:  
The Prime Minister said he had met many people and even foreigners who told him that the Islam Hadhari concept was a good approach to create a united and just society.  
“Islam Hadhari is not about alienating people of other religions. It contains universal values that are also available in other religions,” he said.  

Human Capital Development:  
The Government, Abdullah said, was aware of the need to produce good quality human capital to fulfil the demands of the job market.  
He said: “The Government is committed to improving the way education and training is presented. Thus, institutions of higher learning will have programmes and curriculum based on market needs.”  
Efforts would also be undertaken to step up the training of the teaching workforce to ensure that it was of international standard.  
R&D, Science and Innovation:  
Allocations for bio-technology this year was three times more (RM2bil) compared to the amount under the Eighth Malaysia Plan, Abdullah said.  
He said various funds were also set aside to encourage more R&D efforts.  
 Fostering a Cultural Community with Strong Morals:  
The Government, Abdullah said, viewed seriously the social problems faced by the Indian community such as gangsterism, domestic violence and high student drop-out rates.  
“We will continue to emphasise on prevention and rehabilitation programmes to curb social problems among youths.”  
While praising the unity among races, Abdullah said it needed to be fostered further, adding that the equal growth principle among races was one of the basic principles of national unity.   
Source: The Star | http://thestar.com.my