Malaysia must revise stale policies that do not address current and future economic issues in order to forge ahead, said Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

Citing the income level, he said Malaysia needs to upgrade itself to a high-income nation as it has been in the middle-income trap for a long time.

Muhyiddin said in order to compete, globally, Malaysia must enact bold reform initiatives.

"The time has come to start doing things differently and we hope that the New Economic Model, Economic Transformation Programme and National Key Economic Areas will provide the catalyst to chart a new direction for Malaysia's economy," he said in his speech delivered at the NKEAs workshop at Kelana Jaya today.

The deputy prime minister said by raising the living standards of Malaysia's poorest, the government correspondingly planned to improve education, employment and equality standard for all Malaysians.

This, he said, was vital as the govenment considered how to position Malaysia in the global economy of tomorrow.

"In order for Malaysia to grow and prosper, it must transform its economy and workforce to be more creative and innovative," he said.

Muhyiddin also said the economic disparity has long been a source of social tension in Malaysia and the NEM seeked to adress the gaps by striking a fair balance between the needs of the Bumiputeras and the legitimate needs of other communities.

"An inclusive society will narrow inequalities in our nation, help those in need and better utilise the talents of all Malaysians in our effort to build a competitive workforce," said Muhyiddin.

The deputy prime minister also said Malaysia's future prosperity depended on the country's ability to create a more transparent, market friendly and merit based environment which was conducive to innovation and investment.

He stressed that achieving NEM's goal would require removing many barriers that had hampered Malaysia's growth and development for many years.

"It will not be an easy process and there will certainly be challenges and issues that we have to work through in order to ensure the NEM is successful," he said.

He also said Malaysia had one of the most productive workforce in the world but it must implement robust measures to reach the country's development goals and protect jobs and promote lifetime learning opportunities.

"Such measures will include the creation of an innovative and modern education system and training programmes for employees that meet the changing needs of the global economy," he said.

On the NKEAs, Muhyiddin said it must complement government efforts to further develop sectors in which Malaysia had a competitive advantage and build and capitalise on new and emerging sectors crucial to Malaysia's long-term growth.

"I sincerely hope we can begin the journey together. I ask you today to join us at this NKEA workshop to help identify the areas that are critical in driving these initiatives.

"The prime minister, the cabinet and I will discuss and incorporate your valuable feedback for national consensus," Muhyiddin said.

Among others, today's workshop seeked the private sector's guidance in making investment decisions for the country rather than rely solely on the government to determine which industries to prioritise for strategic investment.

- Bernama