PUTRAJAYA, Aug 27 — The Ministry of Economy will be presenting a White Paper in Parliament on Malaysia’s fiscal policies as its population ages.
Its minister Rafizi Ramli said the government is already in talks to present a comprehensive paper aimed at strengthening its economic stance and improving the quality of life for Malaysians, including pensioners.
“The ministry has completed a detailed blueprint for addressing the nation’s ageing population. This framework, developed in collaboration with the World Bank, will be presented at the National Economic Action Council in November 2024 and will be a major focus of the 13th Malaysia Plan.
“It will be presented in Parliament, then to the public. This is crucial, especially in addressing the country’s weaknesses in social protection for retirees, a matter that requires immediate attention,” Rafizi said at the launch of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report here today.
In the report, Luiz De Mello, director of country studies from the OECD Economics Department, noted that social assistance is fragmented and poorly targeted.
He said too many agencies run numerous programmes leading to duplication and that subsidies are particularly ineffective, with more affluent households receiving a larger share than those at the lower end of the income distribution.
De Mello suggested that shifting social spending from subsidies to well-targeted and unified social assistance benefits would support improvements in social inclusion.
“More than 60 per cent of the population are not covered by any pension scheme, and those who are often fail to receive a decent pension. Rapid population ageing will reinforce the need for stronger and more sustainable pensions.
“Non-contributory social assistance pensions could help fill current coverage gaps in the future, but they currently have low coverage and low benefit levels,” he said.
