KUALA LUMPUR: After four decades of shaping Malaysia’s economic and social policies, the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER) is now struggling to stay afloat.
MIER chairman Tan Sri Effendi Norwawi said MIER – one of the country’s two independent think tanks alongside ISIS Malaysia – is now sustained not by public funds, but by personal contributions from its board of trustees.
“As trustees, we personally advance funds to keep operations running. We do this pro bono because we are deeply passionate about ensuring MIER continues to serve its national role,” he told SunBiz in a recent interview.
Once the go-to source for independent data behind the Malaysia Plans and industrial blueprints, MIER now operates with zero core funding. Its annual government grant? Gone. Its project pipeline? Shrinking. Its staff? Whittled down after years of financial strain.
Without regular government grants, Effendi said, MIER is surviving only because its board members are personally funding it.
“We used to receive an annual grant. That stopped. While we’re still in talks with the government, in the meantime, we’ve had to raise our own funds.”
He said the board is now mostly focused on survival, meeting weekly just to manage basic sustainability.
“There were times we ran out of money. When that happens, we step in ourselves. The board meets almost every week now just to ensure MIER stays alive,” he said.
Today, MIER is overseen by a board of trustees comprising former senior civil servants and industry leaders, including former Economic Planning Unit director-general Tan Sri Dr Sulaiman Mahbob; Royal Selangor founder and former Pemudah co-chair Tan Sri Yong Poh Kon; former Johor menteri besar Tan Sri Abdul Ghani Othman; former Treasury official and economist Datuk Dr M. Shanmughalingam; and Sarawak Deputy State Secretary (Economic Planning and Development) Datuk Sri Dr Muhammad Abdullah Zaidel.
Effendi said the current leadership is working unpaid, out of passion and duty. “We are only volunteers. We do our best. But if we’re unable to raise funds and keep MIER going, there’s a real risk we may not survive, which would be very sad for the country.”
Despite its financial strain, Effendi said, MIER remains actively engaged in policy work. It is currently advising the Ministry of Finance on the Sales and Service Tax and the Goods and Services Tax deliberations, and has submitted proposals to agencies such as Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida)
“Our input is valued because we’re close to industry and remain neutral. We engage as professionals.”
The institute is also in talks with state governments such as Sarawak and Terengganu and financial institutions including Affin Bank.
“We engage with these institutions to see how we can support them whether at the national policy level or in operational matters. For example, we produce GDP (gross domestic product) reports, consumer confidence and business indexes, which banks use to advise their clients.”
MIER is now planning a national economic conference in collaboration with Affin Bank, bringing together local and global experts.
“We hope to gather domestic and international voices to discuss the most pressing topics for national policy and business.”
The think tank will also continue to publish its quarterly reports.
“Our strength is our network. We have access to the best minds across fields, economic, social, sustainability, artificial intelligence, innovation thanks to our ties with universities.
“When the government gives us a task, we can deliver fresh insights backed by the country’s best thinkers.”
Effendi remains hopeful that MIER’s track record, independence and institutional memory will continue to be recognised and supported.
“This is the value MIER brings. This is our national role. We just want the chance to keep doing it.”
Former chairman Tan Sri Sulaiman Mahbob shared that the think tank has been facing long-standing financial difficulties and lacks a stable source of funding.
“We don’t have a permanent income or a fixed government provision for planning. If the government gives us something, it helps, but we still have to go out and find our own projects,” he told SunBiz.
He said MIER’s financial reserves were severely impacted by past economic crises, including the 1997–98 Asian Financial Crisis, the 2008–09 Global Financial Crisis and, most recently, the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Our endowment funds were placed with fund managers, but they were affected when the stock market collapsed,” he said.
“During Covid, we couldn’t carry out any projects for nearly two and a half years. People weren’t coming into the office, but we still had to pay rent, utilities and full wages.”
As a result, key staff left and many projects dried up.
“When we ran out of money, many directors resigned. Our core management team moved on. It’s not that we lost capacity – we just couldn’t afford to keep them,” he said.
Sulaiman noted that although the government continues to help, most recently with a RM1 million allocation, MIER’s long-term financial footing remains shaky.
“The government still helps, but differently now. If they need research, they fund it. If not, there’s no support,” he said.
“Private companies also don’t offer many projects anymore. They have their own in-house research teams. Banks, for instance, used to rely on us. Now they have economic departments of their own.”
Even so, he said, demand for independent voices is growing again as the economy becomes more complex and volatile.
“People are starting to come back to us. They want a balanced view, not just the official government narrative, but also a private, independent one.”
Sulaiman believes Malaysia urgently needs more independent research bodies to keep national economic debates diverse and robust.
“We only have two think tanks – ISIS and MIER. But ISIS is government-funded. MIER is the only truly independent one.
“Other countries like Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines have many. We need at least five or six independent think tanks to give fresh, competing perspectives.”
He said the private sector should also step up to support institutions such as MIER.
“Companies that benefit from a strong economy like oil, palm oil, manufacturing should help us. There are tax incentives for donations. But they’re not coming forward.
“Saying the government no longer helps isn’t accurate. They still help. But the private sector is lagging. It needs to do more.”
For Malaysia to make better long-term decisions, he said, there must be room for more than one voice.
“Right now, we rely on a single source. That makes it harder to respond to new challenges. We need more free-thinking institutions to offer alternative forecasts, models and solutions.”
“That’s why MIER must continue to exist. It’s one of the last independent voices in the country.
