A growing number of Malaysian individuals and groups have called on the government to initiate a constructive agenda to deal with the potential onslaught of the financial crisis that has erupted in the United States and Europe.

The present crisis draws attention to issues that require prompt and serious consideration by the government, including the extent of its ownership and control of the banking sector, the provision of mechanisms to support small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs), the effective and productive employment of government-linked companies (GLCs), the availability of viable incentives to draw foreign direct investments (FDI) and the volume of infrastructure development spending that has to be made available to sustain efforts to reduce poverty and stimulate growth.