Speech By Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng During The 4th Asia Economic Summit Jointly Organised By The Asia Society And Asian Strategy & Leadership Institute(ASLI) In JW Marriott Hotel, Hong Kong On 9.12.2008.
Eight Measures To Transform Penang From A Sweat Shop To A Smart Shop And Reinvent The Economy For Sustainable Growth And Prosperity.
The theme of the 4th Asia Economic Summit of “Reinventing Asian Economies for Sustainable Growth & Prosperity” is apt and timely following the global financial crisis that has threatened both the growth and prosperity of both developed country and emerging economies. There is also a need to reinvent as the conditions that made prosperity and growth possible either do not exist or are not applicable any more.
The most popular measures to counter the current recession includes an expansionary budget and government guarantees for financial institutions. However we need to look beyond the recession and be bold enough to undertake fundamental reforms and reinvent the economy to allow Asia is to continue enjoying sustainable growth and prosperity. Asia is too diverse to be presented in a singular case. So allow me to present the perspective of Penang, the problems, successes and failures of a middle income state.
Penang is a key trading post that successfully evolved into one of the largest electronics manufacturing hub in the world during the last century. Penang’s success from the 70s to the 80s made Penang the leading state in Malaysia with GDP per capita of RM 28,851, double that of Malaysia at RM 19,189 for 2008. Despite being the second smallest state in Malaysia and with a population of only 1.4 million, Penang’s exports alone amounted to 27% of Malaysia’s total exports.
There were five common characteristics of successful growth economies identified in “The Growth Report” by A. Michael Spence were:-
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