KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 11 — The Unity Government is preparing the country for phase two of the Mid-Term Review of the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP MTR) themed "Sustainable, Prosperous, High-Income” with three main focus areas: strengthening sustainability, developing a prosperous society and progressing towards becoming a high-income nation.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said a total of 17 policy shifts and 71 key initiatives had been introduced to ensure success in achieving the targets.

"The 12MP MTR will continue to strengthen the national and people’s development agenda towards the goals of the Madani Economy,” he said when tabling the 12MP MTR in the Dewan Rakyat today.

"To give a clearer picture, the tabling will be explained in detail through 12 affirmations that are the essence of the 12MP MTR and structured via three main focus areas,” he said.

Anwar said the government has targeted a jump in economic growth of at least 5.0 per cent per year during the 12MP by focusing on two main objectives.

These include strengthening productivity by accelerating the transition to high-value industries and embracing advanced technology and enhancing skilled talent.

The government also intends to make Malaysia the preferred destination for investors by strengthening competitiveness, said Anwar.

He said the government will strengthen sectors and industries with high growth and value in order to accelerate the economic structure reforms which cover five areas, namely industries based on energy transition, industries based on technology and digital, high-value electrical and electronic industries, agricultural and agro-based industries and rare earth industries.

Anwar said the National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR) has identified 10 strategic and high-impact flagship projects with an expected investment of RM25 billion, creating 23,000 high-quality job opportunities and reducing 10,000 gigagrams of carbon dioxide equivalent per year.

He added that a new National Mineral Policy will be drafted to drive comprehensive development of the mineral industry based on the principles of sustainability and responsibility.

"This policy will be used as a guide in carrying out mining activities in permanent forest reserves, environmentally sensitive areas and protected areas,” said Anwar.

He said the government will also develop a policy of banning the export of rare earth raw materials to avoid exploitation and loss of resources, thus guaranteeing maximum returns for the country.

Meanwhile, the government is confident that the tourism industry, which was badly affected by the enforcement of the movement control order, will recover strongly.

Anwar said the government will accelerate the recovery process of the tourism industry by improving the regulatory framework, encouraging digitisation and promoting sustainable tourism that is based on nature.

"This recovery can be seen based on the increase in tourist arrivals to 9.2 million in the second quarter of 2023 and is expected to reach at least 18 million tourists this year,” he added. — Bernama