Nature, a source of wealth
Malaysia's success is based on its natural resources, including oil, water, wood and iron. The discovery of oil off the coast of Borneo at the beginning of the 20th century allowed the country to get rid of its energy supply concerns. It is also a source of foreign currency. The oil group Petronas has announced a net turnover of 12.2 billion euros in 2018. It is thus placed 158th on the list of the world's largest companies drawn up by the American magazine Fortune. The country exports nearly 350,000 barrels per day, primarily to China. The Middle Kingdom, voracious in raw materials, has doubled its demand for crude oil over the year 2018, bringing it to more than 1.3 million tons per month. Important water resources - rivers flow everywhere - allow diversification of the energy supply. Hydroelectric dams are being built all over the country, making Malaysia the largest exporter of electricity in Southeast Asia. A programme to build 12 dams for the state of Sarawak alone was launched in 2012, opening the door to much controversy. The first of these is the destruction of the habitat of indigenous people in remote areas of primary forest. Indigenous people in central Borneo are now actively mobilizing to thwart the Baram Dam project. The vast forests, especially on the island of Borneo, are being heavily exploited to extract timber that is sought after for its hardness. 5 billion in 2018, 60% of which was exported in processed products (pellets, chips, slats, etc.). Forests that have been razed are then replanted with oil palms. It is common to drive for hours on roads bordered on all sides by eleis de Guinée, whose fruits are refined on the spot. The oil is then sold to the food industry. The preservation of the environment hardly seems to reach the edge of the woods. In 2018, Malaysia's Timber Industry Committee has committed to replanting 140,000 hectares of the 10 million hectares already exploited. The industry is also considering the possibility of using rubber trees and Guinea eleis trunks in order to limit logging in natural forests. At present, only a few forests are exploited sustainably, with selection and extraction of the coveted species. The subsoil is not exempt from the rule of overexploitation. They are rich in iron, which is extracted on a massive scale to supply the iron-intensive new technology industry in particular. This need has given rise to a new market which the country has taken over: the production of semiconductor circuits and printed circuits. These are then exported to China or Korea where they are used in the assembly of telephones, computers, machine tools, etc
The services in reinforcement
While the primary industry still supports a large part of the country's economy, we must look at the service economy to find the most profitable companies. Six of the top 10 Malaysian companies are in the banking and finance sector. They generated more than €5.4 billion in net profits in 2018. 5.4 billion in 2018, reflecting the overall good health of the Malaysian economy, which is growing at an annual rate of almost 5%. Tourism is the other key factor in supporting the country's economic development. Malaysia uses its exceptional wildlife and the beauty of its islands to attract tourists. The country hopes to enter the top 10 most visited countries, but there is still a long way to go. It welcomed 25.8 million tourists in 2018, a slight decline from the previous year. It currently ranks 15th according to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). The country is investing heavily to facilitate arrivals. Numerous regional air links allow direct access to the peninsula's and Borneo's key destinations. The Chinese and Koreans are the most frequent visitors. The geographical proximity, the fauna and flora, but also the gastronomy and the - relatively - low level of ringgit are among the strong arguments that attract the people living along the China Sea. Malaysia's promotional campaigns are also recurrent. The latest one is "Visit Malaysia, Truly Asia" in 2020. It highlights the country's cultural and community diversity. For tourism seems to be the only vector that values the diversity of the people of Malaysia, to make it an asset.
The community malaise
This is the challenge that Malaysia faces, again and again: the unification of its people, so that every inhabitant feels fully a citizen. Ethnic backgrounds, but also religious affiliation, are the dividing factors that keep the different communities apart. Simply put, Malaysians blame the Chinese for monopolizing wealth and holding the keys to the economy. The Chinese criticize the Malay for excluding them from the political and social game and for wanting to relegate them to the rank of second-class citizens. Political decision-makers are struggling to grasp the scale of the problem. The previous prime minister, Najib Razak, had launched a vast development programme called "1 Malaysia" aimed at bringing communities together. It was the source of the biggest embezzlement scandal in the country's history. As a result, in the 2018 general elections, the winning candidate, Mahathir Bin Mohamad, campaigned on the need to revive the economic strength of a flagging Malaysia. At the age of 92, he was elected on a promise to turn the country around in two years and then resign. He also promised to abolish the goods and services tax that had boosted Malaysia's population in 2016. At the end of 2019, that tax was still in effect. And the growth rate was estimated at more than 4.5%, which would make the French Minister of the Economy pale with envy. The urgency of bringing the communities closer together is, however, very real. The percentage of Chinese in the Malaysian population has risen from 38% at the time of independence to 23% in 2016. More than 2 million departures were recorded during this period. An expatriate return programme, based on tax reductions, has been initiated by the government. It has registered 398 candidates for the year 2016. The issue is often addressed on an individual level - you will no doubt notice this. But it seems to remain taboo at the political level.
