KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 22 — Official government policies are needed to fully leverage on China’s vast investment into the Malaysia, particularly to ensure that Malaysians will have access to high-paying, high-skilled jobs in China-based companies, a think tank suggested today.

Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS) chief executive Wan Saiful Wan Jan said this is crucial to avoid having an abundance of low-skilled, low-paying jobs which he said is the current trend when it comes to Chinese investments in other countries.

“Based on our findings from Chinese investments into African nations and other countries that received Chinese money like Sri Lanka, the companies do create new jobs but they are mainly low skilled, low paying jobs,” Wan Saiful said.

“This is where I think the policy environment is important. We need to make sure that eventually high level jobs are ours and are accessible for Malaysians as well.

“I understand that at the end of the day investors have the final say, but Malaysians should have a fighting chance,” he added.

Currently IDEAS is in its preliminary stage of its study into the impact of Chinese investment into the Malaysian labour market. Wan Saiful expects to complete the study by March next year and published its findings and recommendations in the following month.

The two case studies Wan Saiful presented at the second day of the National Economic Outlook 2018-2019, broadly touched on the results of Chinese investments into South Africa and Kenya.

Besides creating tens of thousands of jobs for low-skilled workers, in general Chinese investments in those two countries increased trade, foreign direct investment (FDI) and improvement in the infrastructure sector while filling a void left by Western investors.

However, there is now a backlash against Chinese investments where local residents are accusing the Chinese of stealing jobs and that Chinese employers tend to pay the lowest salaries in Africa while not granting any meaningful benefit to African workers.

“An academic survey in 2014 found that among 400 companies in African countries found that low skilled roles were 80 to 97 per cent occupied by locals,” he said adding that Malaysia can benefit from Africa’s experience and avoid this fate.

He also said that the nation needs to manage foreign worker influx and educate itself to avoid this mindset as it is unfair to the companies that actually created jobs in the first place.

“It may not be relevant now because most Malaysians avoid the low-skilled jobs and leave it to the foreign workers. But remember, this same scenario occurred in the US around 40 years ago.

Today, they are blaming the foreigners for stealing their jobs.

“We need to makes sure interaction between foreign workers and locals aren’t antagonistic. We don’t want to come to the point where they are fighting each other. This is a long term risk,” he said.

Chinese investment in Malaysia at the moment are focussing on massive infrastructure and property developments.