"Budget 2023 signals a brand new era for Electrified and Sustainable Mobility in Malaysia. In our efforts to drive more sustainable and responsible mobility, we're grateful to see the forward mindset shared by Malaysians, and we remain ready to cooperate with local like-minded partners to develop action-based solutions on issues that affect us all. The extension of the import and excise duty exemption for fully imported (CBU) EVs, alongside incentives for EV charging equipment manufacturers, are positive implementations that will accelerate the adoption of electrified mobility in the country.

As BMW Group Malaysia drives forth with our electrification strategies, we look forward to working alongside the government and other key stakeholders towards a sustainable, responsible future for all Malaysians."

"The government’s push to raise the overall productivity of the nation through capacity building, talent and entrepreneurship development is critical for the future of businesses and companies nationwide. Throughout the human resources pipeline, starting with the youth to women on boards, the Budget 2023 reflects the government’s long-range vision to create a more resilient business environment and economy for Malaysia.

"Upskilling efforts and the focus on underserved segments such as more incentives to women and the youth will allow Malaysia to bridge the gap in building the talent and resource pipeline for the nation. HRD Corp’s RM750 million budget for upskilling more than 800,000 workers as well as incentivising investments in technology and intellectual property will allow local talent to reposition themselves for new opportunities, and develop a more diverse and dynamic leadership and workforce, which will enable greater productivity for the nation’s economic growth."

“Budget 2023 acknowledges the importance of connectivity as the lifeblood of economies. With the largest infrastructure budget to date at RM95 billion to focus on the development and restoration of transportation networks and systems such as roads, Mass Rapid Transit, and bridges to enable mobility of communities and movement of goods nationwide, the budget will allow greater participation from rural communities in the growing world commerce and facilitate different commercial endeavours such as ecotourism and the growing need for agro-food enterprises.

The government’s approach of placing importance on the rakyat’s welfare, specifically on the challenges of home ownership and accessibility to affordable homes is commendable. Such measures as the construction of 500,000 affordable homes across Malaysia by 2025, the allocation of RM367 million for the development of People's Housing Projects in urban areas, and the allocation of RM358 million for the construction of 4,250 affordable homes under the Rumah Mesra Rakyat programme will be crucial to promote home affordability and inclusivity of home ownership, especially among the B40 and M40 communities. The increase of tax exemption to 75 per cent for purchase of homes valued between RM500,000 to RM1,000,000 will likely spur economic growth in the real estate industry, as the industry steer towards recovery from the aftereffects of the pandemic and sectoral lockdowns.

The introduction of Kontraktornita initiative and the absorption of veterans into the construction industry will feed more local talent into the ecosystem, and will contribute towards alleviating our nation’s labour crunch and dependency on foreign labour.”

"The latest government budget has shown exciting things coming up for the ESG/sustainability sector. I believe that by having a compliance policy, it shows the government is very serious about enforcing ESG/sustainability measures into corporate practices. The introduction of a carbon tax will ensure a mass effect on all industries, especially those with high carbon emissions, to adhere to ESG/sustainability standards. The government also has been very proactive, achieving as of to date more than 40 per cent of its target to plant 100 million trees by 2025 is a tremendous feat."

"The deployment of 5G infrastructure allows enterprises to spearhead advanced management and manufacturing practices, such as distributed and decentralised 5G edge-slicing business systems. With support from the government grant, this will allow businesses to adopt the necessary technology to move up the value chain, raising the bar of automation technology and the ever-connected digital economy.

We're seeing the rise of sliced factory applications with video analytics, remote-controlled robots, drones, telemetry, digital plant monitoring, close loop control, and dynamic management. Vehicle location tracking and activity traceability will further allow businesses to adopt SDGs, and SMEs to be part of data contributors to the national carbon economy."

"Despite the limited funding for cybersecurity, it is indeed encouraging to see the government put focus on curbing the rapid rise of scams and cyber-attack. Internet Alliance is keen to collaborate with Cybersecurity Malaysia to bring further awareness among private and public services in cybersecurity."

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