The rapid expansion of the country’s digital economy in recent years positions it as a potential primary driver of development. The government sees it as a key driver of economic growth and a new source of fiscal revenue.

Overview of Malaysia’s digital economy

Investors have been forced to re-evaluate their investment strategies, given the new economic reality of inflation and geopolitical uncertainties as well as the need to decarbonise. According to Schroders’ Global Investor Study 2023, 57% of Malaysian investors — versus 54% globally and 59% in Southeast Asia — have already adjusted their investment strategies, while a third intend to do so. The UK-based multinational asset management company had surveyed more than 23,000 individual investors from 33 countries and territories for its flagship study.

A shift in investment strategies amid new economic reality

The salary was once seen as the main motivator for keeping employees happy in the workplace — the higher the salary, the happier the workforce. However, this theory does not seem to hold water anymore.

A higher salary does not mean a happier workforce

In 2022, the number of graduates in Malaysia rose 5.1% to 5.92 million, while the graduate’s unemployment rate declined 3.7%, according to data released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia in its Graduate Statistics 2022 report.

Rise in number of graduates, drop in number of those unemployed

The adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) has been steadily progressing over the years but recent advancements, particularly in generative AI, along with the increased accessibility of these tools, have brought heightened attention to the transformative changes and unprecedented possibilities.

Developing robust AI strategies

Malaysia is No 42 in the best-performing upper-middle-income group as a talent-competitive country, just behind Brunei (No 41) and China (No 40), which are categorised as high-income and upper-middle-income nations respectively, according to the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) 2023 released on Nov 7 by Insead, in collaboration with the Descartes Institute for the Future and the Human Capital Leadership Institute.