KUALA LUMPUR: The power and wealth of the national treasure should be used to rebuild Malaysia to emerge as a new economic giant, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

He said Malaysia’s economy was still strongly on track with a growth of 5.6% in the first quarter of this year despite the challenging economic conditions.

“The growth is one of the best in the region at 5.6% compared with China at 4.5%, Indonesia at 5.0% and Vietnam at 3.3 %,” he said in his address at the Unity Government National Convention 2023 here today.

Anwar, who is also the finance minister, said Malaysia recorded a low inflation rate of 3.6% in the first quarter of this year compared with other countries in the region.

He stressed that the government is committed to rebuilding Malaysia and protecting the people’s interest with the cooperation of the Cabinet to attract more foreign investments into the country.

It is proven by the quality digital investment by Amazon Web Services which is about to open a new regional infrastructure in Malaysia with an investment worth RM25.5 billion, he added.

The government also attracted several other investments including an investment commitment of RM170 billion from China, he said.

“This means good governance and negotiations that do not provide commissions for ministers and their families. This means the ease and speed of doing business that we must set so that this country can emerge again as a giant in the region,” Anwar said. – Bernama