PUTRAJAYA APR.22: The government hopes to have more strategic collaboration with various parties to transform the national mineral industry to ensure it is benefitting and contributing to the prosperity of the people.
Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said, the mineral industry should not be looked as an industry that is moved by the industry without any “connection” with the lives of the people.
“The government is confident with the National Mineral Industry Transformation Plan Framework 2021-2030 (TIM 2021-2030) that is being developed, we are capable to achieve the future mineral industry that will be managed in a clean and efficient system with the application of the current environmental friendly technology.
“The growth of the industry in the middle level and downstream will open up to more job opportunities to local skilful workers and will have high returns to the country,” Muhyiddin said at the launching of the National Mineral Industry Transformation Plan Framework 2021-2030 (TIM 2021-2031) here today.
Muhyiddin added, the government is confident the local mineral industry will be at par with the mining industry in developed nations such as United States of America, France, Japan, China, Australia and Canada. To reach that level, there should be a close cooperation between the government, industry, academia, organisation and civil society.
The Prime Minister also highlighted, with the fast development in the Industry Revolutions 4.0, the demand for various kinds of mineral will increase drastically. The future technology will rely on the mineral inputs including the manufacturing of products to overcome climate change such as solar panel, windmill, electric vehicles and energy storage.
“Realising this situation, as Malaysia is rich in minerals, we should be smart in positioning ourselves and take the opportunity to explore and develop the natural resources that we have,” Muhyiddin added.
The Prime Minister stressed that the government agrees on the importance of mineral and its contribution to the socio-economy but that does not mean that the government allows activities in the industry to be carried out without control.
“The challenges that are facing the world today should be tackled effectively that is to manage the industry without causing damage to the environment and disturb the human life,” Muhyiddin reiterated.
Earlier he said, the mineral contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for 2019 was RM9.9 billion or 0.7%. The value of imported minerals and mineral based products was RM90.96 billion exceeding the exports amounting to RM59.40 billion.
The government is now targeting the contribution of the mineral industry to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) to increase to RM29 billion by 2030, the Prime Minister added.
Meanwhile, he said, the mineral industry has offered to 15,275 jobs with an imbalanced concentration at the upstream, middle and downstream level.
However Muhyiddin said, the mineral industry has a new light when the earlier studies done by the Minerals and Geoscience Department Malaysia found that the country has big potentials in mineral resources if efforts are focused on it.
“This will give a high impact to the prosperity of the people and the national economy if it is being developed with responsibility and sustainability,” Muhyiddin said.-Malaysia World News
