“Malaysia has too many plans and policies. We know what needs to be done in this country, and it is really the implementation part that needs to be focused on,” World Bank economist Apurva Sanghi said in a Keluar Sekejap podcast.

He said the implementation of social assistance programmes in the country has been fragmented, adding that there are too many similar programmes being handled by different agencies.

“For example, you have 70 agencies that provide some sort of skills training, and 35 agencies that provide SME support programmes.

“This proliferation and fragmentation hinder implementation. Because of this successive fragmentation, people don’t know where to go to seek assistance, and it perpetuates inequalities,” he said.

Apurva said the issue of fragmentation has been dealt with by Malaysia before, citing the estimated 180 SOPs at the beginning of Covid-19 outbreak, which were later consolidated into one SOP through the MySejahtera application.

Former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin, one of the hosts of the programme, attributed the fragmentation issue to a “lack of political will”.

Asked about the factors that had contributed to the low productivity rate in Malaysia, Apurva said it was due to low total investment, a poor education system, and malnutrition.

He said the learning poverty rate in the country is at 40%, higher than most countries in the region.

“If you don’t get the schooling right, especially at the early primary and pre-schooling stage, you’re not going to get much (results in improving the country’s productivity growth),” he said.

Consequently, he said, the low productivity rate has led to a gradual decline in the country’s export rate, dropping from around 120% of exports to GDP in 2000 to just 73% in 2022.

He attributed this to the failure to liberalise the country’s economy, adding that past governments have failed to make the economy more competitive in segments where it can be developed.