MP SPEAKS | The 2018 CG Watch report published this month by the Asian Corporate Governance Association (ACGA) and CLSA has ranked Malaysia fourth out of 12 Asia-Pacific economies in terms of market accountability and transparency.

This is a significant improvement from seventh place in 2016 when the report was previously published. This means Malaysia is the biggest 2018 gainer among regional rivals, including Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore.

The rise further proves that the government’s continuous effort to instil the principles of competency, accountability and transparency (CAT) in its administration is bearing fruit.

The ACGA states that the 2018 improvement reflects Malaysia’s “concrete move to tackle endemic corruption issues fostered by the previous Najib regime.”

The report further stresses that the jump is based on optimism over the May 9, 2018, political change in Malaysia which has translated into “tangible improvements to enforcement and reporting.”

Apart from strong anti-corruption measures currently undertaken, the government has embraced open tender in its procurement process more widely. This has not only increased the level of transparency in the public sector but has also influenced the private sector positively.

The application of zero-based budgeting and the migration towards accrual accounting from cash accounting by 2021 as announced in the 2019 Budget are also part of the government’s wider institutional reform agenda that will further raise the level of accountability and transparency in the government.

The improvement in the 2108 CG Watch report is only one example of how the government’s institutional reform agenda is raising Malaysia’s governance quality and contributing to the government’s fiscal sustainability.

These institutional reforms undertaken by the government have convinced the top three rating agencies to maintain Malaysia’s sovereign credit ratings at A- or A3. 

Moody’s on Dec 7 is the latest to have done so and this came after Fitch Ratings reaffirmed the government’s credit ratings at A- on Aug 14.

The biggest proof yet demonstrating that the government’s plan is working is the dramatic surge in approved foreign direct investment in manufacturing since May 2018 as reported by the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida).

Approved manufacturing FDI for the period from May until September 2018 rose from RM27.7 billion to RM35 billion, from merely RM7.3 billion in the May-September 2017 period.

The total approved manufacturing FDI so far for this year is expected to create more than 30,000 new jobs in the near future once it gets implemented.

The government will press on with its institutional reforms to prevent widespread abuses that happened under the previous administration from repeating and to improve the economic well-being of all Malaysians.

LIM GUAN ENG is DAP MP for Bagan in Penang and Finance Minister.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.