He said the government was also committed to reviewing the procurement policies of government-linked companies (GLCs) and government-linked investment companies (GLICs), as well as issues related to Bumiputera corporate equity, which was still far below the 30% target.
“In this regard, the government is reviewing the Equity Safety Net (ESN) mechanism to ensure that shares held by Bumiputera-mandated agencies remain in the Bumiputera group of companies.
“This mechanism will be fine-tuned to achieve Bumiputera equity and value without impacting too much on the competitiveness of the relevant agencies,” he said at the launch of the Bumiputera Development Action 2030 (TPB2030) here today.
Ismail said although Bumiputeras were the majority racial group in the country at 20.9 million, or 69.7% of the population, their socio-economic status still needed improvement, especially in terms of the wealth gap, income gap and asset ownership.
“Bumiputeras need to be helped in new and more structured ways. Nobody will be left out or forgotten, in line with the essence of the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP),” he said.
He said Bumiputera success was not just a Bumiputera agenda alone, but would bring returns to the country as a whole.
“We are also able to drive the Bumiputera agenda to the global stage by empowering talents in high-tech fields, and improving the quality of graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, as well as technical and vocational education and training,” he said.
TPB2030 is the reference text for the next decade for Bumiputera economic and socio-economic empowerment and is a continuation of Bumiputera empowerment initiatives and programmes.
Based on part of the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 and supported by the 12MP, TPB2030 was developed by the Bumiputera Agenda Steering Unit (Teraju) to achieve equality of opportunities and outcomes.
TPB2030 will achieve six targets by 2030 – the contribution of gross operating surplus of Bumiputera enterprises of 20% to gross domestic product (GDP) worth RM438 billion, wages at RM5,169.12, household income at RM18,402.68, return on financial assets rate per capita at a value of RM4,495.65, a total of 3,248,920 skilled workers, and home ownership of 4,758,469.
The six targets will be achieved through seven key economic growth activities comprising agriculture and commodities, digital economy, halal and food, Islamic finance 2.0, transport and sustainable mobility, manufacturing, and tourism.