Pikom: Malaysia must continue harnessing new technologies

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia must continue to commit harnessing new technologies for the nation to become a fully digitalised competitive economy, said the National ICT Association of Malaysia (Pikom).

In its Job Market Outlook In Malaysia 2018 report, the association said the emphasis should be on bridging the digital gap and enriching the sector with the right initiatives to keep Malaysia at the forefront of the global technology revolution.

“Pikom hopes the new government focuses on the Internet economy as it is expected to be the fastest growing industry in the region with the biggest economic growth,” it said.

Pikom expects the information and communications technology (ICT) industry to continue posting a higher doubledigit growth this year with e-commerce playing a much bigger role in the industry.

The government should also place greater emphasis on promoting local participation in the sector to ensure that local small and medium enterprises can participate in this growth, it said.

The association is looking forward to work with the government and all relevant agencies as well as stakeholders in fast-tracking Malaysia's digital economy towards 2020 and beyond.

Meanwhile, Pikom anticipates consumer and corporate spending to slowdown after the Sales and Services Tax (SST) is reintroduced on Sept 1 and until at least end-2018, as they adopt a wait-and-see mentality due to uncertainties in the tax framework such as rates and basket of goods.

“Key questions being asked are what rates will be applied for different types of goods and will the basket of goods be the same as the original SST, and the effects of the changes in accounting rules.

“In view of this, Pikom is not too optimistic of the gross domestic product growth for the fourth quarter and forecasts growth of 4.3 to 4.5 per cent,” it said.

Pikom, however, concurred with many economists and analysts who have weighed in on the economic, political and social developments of Malaysia post General Election 14, that the country could endure a short-term to medium-term “pain” to realise a long-term gain.

The full effects of the changes being implemented by the new government might only be realised much later, perhaps even in a year's time, it explained.

For the full year, Pikom expects the Malaysian economy to grow about 4.8 per cent, but might pick up towards the end of 2019 or early 2020.

This is assuming no major adverse global factors impact the economy and implementation of the Federal government manifesto does not encounter too many hurdles. — Bernama