PUTRAJAYA: The Bumiputera Empowerment Units in ministries, government agencies, government-linked companies, and government-linked investment companies are proposed to be reactivated to ensure that all efforts to empower the Bumiputera are effectively implemented.
In empowering the Bumiputera, Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi also proposed that Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) be strengthened with the responsibility of coordination, monitoring, and evaluation under the Bumiputera Economic Council.
These efforts would fall under the new Bumiputera Economic Transformation (TEB), a new progressive policy aimed at narrowing the socioeconomic gap among the people.
"I would like to recall an experience from 48 years ago when I was serving at a foreign-based commercial bank. At that time, the Governor of the Central Bank directed monthly reporting on the financing and participation status of Bumiputera (the number of Bumiputera employees, Bumiputera customers, Bumiputera borrowers) in the banking sector.
"That was the commitment at the time to ensure that the Bumiputera agenda was implemented by the banking sector. In this regard, to ensure that all Bumiputera empowerment efforts at the Ministry, agencies, GLCs, and GLICs are effectively implemented, I propose that MARA be strengthened with the responsibility of coordination, monitoring, and evaluation under the Bumiputera Economic Council.
"Concurrently, the Bumiputera Empowerment Unit in the Ministries, Agencies, GLCs, and GLICs needs to be reactivated so that coordination, monitoring, and evaluation can be carried out effectively," he said in his keynote address at the Bumiputera Economic Congress (KEB) here today.
Zahid said under the TEB, the roles of Bumiputera agencies such as Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB), MARA, Perbadanan Usahawan Nasional Berhad (PUNB), Perbadanan Nasional Berhad (PNS), and Tabung Haji, among others, would be more prominent in empowering Bumiputera across all economic sectors.
The Economy Ministry, in collaboration with the Rural and Regional Development Ministry, is hosting KEB 2024, themed 'Positive, Progressive, Innovative,' at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC) for three days.
This year, KEB focuses on 10 clusters covering 10 sectors, namely Education Reform and Human Capital; Institutions of Technical, Vocational Education and Training (Main Career Choice) and Strengthening of Halal Industry and Rural Development and Empowerment of Orang Asli Communities.
Other clusters are Wealth Creation and Corporate Dominance; Competitiveness of Bumiputera Enterprises; Mastery of New Technologies; Felda and Federal Territory Land; Socioeconomy of Sabah Bumiputera and Socioeconomy of Sarawak Bumiputera.
