Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz has announced that the Short-Term Economic Recovery Plan for June to December 2020 is slated to be launched by the Prime Minister sometime this month.
The plan according to the finance minister will be focusing on three key objectives, to empower people, propel businesses and stimulate the economy.
“Since early May, MOF colleagues and I have engaged with over 100 stakeholders. Among the sectors involved were tourism, social enterprise, creative industry, business associations, technology and e-commerce, education, housing , manufacturing, human resources, private healthcare, professional services, NGOs as well as agriculture,” said Tengku Zafrul.
The Finance Ministry further stated that according to a Nielsen study, over 40 percent of workers surveyed had indicated a reduction in income during the Movement Control Order (MCO) period.
As for businesses, the main challenges faced were payment of salaries, reduction in customers, payment of rental for premises and cashflow limitations.
“I do not wish to raise unnecessary alarm or to paint a bleak picture of the economy. Rather, these are realities of the challenges we will face and as such need to be addressed by the Government,
“The Short-term Economic Recovery Plan is our chance to capitalise on fresh opportunities arising from the Covid-19 crisis for the country’s future development,” he said.
