KUALA LUMPUR, March 11 — The affinity Malaysians share with the English language has emerged as a significant draw for foreign investors eyeing opportunities in the country, according to insights provided by the American Malaysian Chamber of Commerce (AmCham), a prominent US-Malaysia business group today.
Its chief executive Siobhan Das also attributed Malaysia’s appeal to the nation’s welcoming stance toward diverse cultures and its robust workforce.
“Malaysia’s diversity, resilience, and its embrace of different working styles are key factors that make it stand out compared to neighbouring countries,” Das said during the launch of the AmCham Economic Impact Survey (EIS) 2022/2023 here.
Highlighting the enduring partnership between American companies and Malaysia she pointed out that this relationship spans over five decades, indicating a deep-rooted understanding of Malaysian governance and policies among US businesses.
Furthermore, Malaysia’s exceptionally skilled workforce has played a pivotal role in sustaining this investment trajectory, with many large corporations now being predominantly managed by local talents.
“And again English probably is one of the most significant things. [Foreign investors] don’t have to learn another language, they can come to another country and operate very very quickly.
“All these areas don’t come up necessarily in surveys but I think that’s one of the big attractions that Malaysia has,” she added.
Recently, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim called for Malaysians to improve their mastery of both Malay and English languages, saying all students in school must be given focus so that their mastery of English will improve as foreign companies are beginning to invest in Malaysia.
The survey captured the contribution of 81 AmCham member companies to the Malaysian economy noting approximately 57 per cent enjoying revenue growth and 63 per cent anticipating growth over the coming year.
It said historical foreign direct investments (FDI) of the 81 companies amounted to RM172.6 billion. The survey indicated that at least 148,778 individuals were employed by these companies. In total, there were two agribusiness respondents, three oil gas/energy respondents, 42 manufacturing respondents, four insurance respondents and 26 general services respondents.
Of the participating companies, 65 are American multinational companies.
The services sector recorded RM1.3 billion in capital investments while members from its banking sector provided loan financing up to RM52.1 billion in sectors such as manufacturing, services, property, healthcare, financial services and construction.
Former deputy international trade and industry minister and current board member of the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida), Ong Kian Ming, echoed Siobhan’s sentiments pointing to Malaysia’s attractiveness as an alternative investment destination amidst challenges faced by businesses in other countries.
Drawing attention to Singapore’s recent cost pressures on companies operating within its borders, Ong highlighted the growing interest among Singapore-based enterprises in exploring options for co-investment or relocation.
“Over the past five years, the cost pressures exerted on [foreign] companies in Singapore is unprecedented. Companies that are based in Singapore are looking for complimentary sites to co-invest or relocate. Malaysia has become attractive for its proximity and other things would be skill and talent.
“That’s why the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone has become very important. Its physical connectivity through the Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link project that is to be completed by end-2026 will improve connectivity through passport-free travel, which had been proposed,” he said.
Ong highlighted the collaborative efforts between the Ministry of Trade and Industry in Singapore and its Malaysian counterpart as further enhancing Malaysia’s appeal to foreign investors.
“You don’t have that kind of value ecosystem happening between Thailand or Vietnam, for example, or Thailand and Myanmar, or Indonesia and the Philippines,” he remarked.
Additionally, Ong highlighted the significance of policies like the National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR) in facilitating knowledge transfer to Malaysia, particularly in software adoption and management.
He emphasised the attractiveness of such initiatives to American companies, and renowned leaders in the industry.
“When we talk about the NETR, we’re talking about investment structures in terms of solar farms and hydrogen farms as well as the software to be able to run those plants. To be able to have that software could attract more FDI to come in.
“The companies who play in this space, many of them will be from the US because of the large experience they have in this area and the fact they’re pushing for a lot of these investments in the US, it will have some knockover effect in Malaysia,” he added.
