KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 23 — More than 30 proposals were made in the Budget 2023 Consultation which touched on aspects of the people, business, economy and government, in line with the theme of ‘Strengthening Recovery and Facilitating Reforms towards Economic Resilience and Well-Being of Keluarga Malaysia’.

The Finance Ministry said that among its recommendations was to strengthen programmes to increase the income of low-income people, provide opportunities and assistance to the B40 group, the elderly and people with disabilities (OKU), and increase the development of human capital and skilled workers.

“Among the main topics are addressing the rising cost of living of the people, the development of the agricultural industry, public healthcare, the implementation of targeted subsidies and increasing the cooperation of the public, private and social sectors towards the well-being of Keluarga Malaysia.

“The proposal includes increasing the role of the government and government-related companies to develop vendors, especially young entrepreneurs, women, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as well as a more inclusive budget, especially involving vulnerable groups, women and OKU,” it said in a statement today.

There are also recommendations and the need to improve the efficiency of public service delivery in terms of governance, corruption containment and health services.

In addition, the Finance Ministry said that in order to accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Agenda by 2030, the focus and cooperation of all parties are needed to ensure the protection and conservation of the environment and climate, disaster management and food security.

The Finance Ministry said the preliminary process of the Budget 2023 Consultation has already started since June 2022 with an invitation to stakeholders to submit a budget memorandum that addresses the issues and recommendations for Budget 2023.

A total of 242 memorandums with several proposed solutions have been received by the Finance Ministry.

According to the statement, today’s discussion is the starting point for a more comprehensive engagement session that will be held in the near future to refine the input for Budget 2023.

“The Finance Ministry will hold a series of focus group meetings to discuss selected areas.

“In addition, as a complement to the Budget Consultation today, the Finance Ministry has launched the Budget 2023 Proposal Portal,” it said.

The consultation included two sessions chaired by Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz and Deputy Finance Minister 1 Datuk Mohd Shahar Abdullah.

It was completed by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob at the Finance Ministry today.

It was attended by nearly 300 participants from the private sector, education, non-governmental organisations and civil society organisations who also proposed appropriate measures to be considered in the preparation of Budget 2023 which is expected to be presented in parliament in October.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here