KLANG, Oct 12 — Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali today urged all target groups support to Budget 2020 initiatives for it to be a success.  

He said the initiatives are reflected through three main areas — the expansion of the domestic economy, attraction of foreign and domestic investments and digital economy which will be crucial for the development of a country that is advanced. 

“I’m glad to see that the Budget also addressed challenges and problems faced by the people. 

“I hope this Budget will be accepted by the people because only with that, the initiatives announced can be a success,” he said when met by reporters after presenting mock cheques of allocation to 10 schools for upgrade works.

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He added that he is hopeful that the RM6.5 billion allocation in the Budget 2020 which is focused on job creation for unemployed graduates and women will receive participation from relevant parties.

“We want them to embrace new technology such as Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, big data and robotics,” he added.

Commenting on the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 (SPV2030), Azmin said the Budget 2020 is a kickstart to realise the SPV2030.

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“The spirit of the SPV2030 has been initiated in the Budget, and the main objective of it is to close the gap between the rich and the poor.

“From the Budget, it addresses these issues (highlighted in the SPV2030).

“Huge allocations have been set aside for Sabah and Sarawak and for some of the states in Semenanjung. This will close the economic gap between states and ethnicities,” he said.

Earlier in his speech during the cheque presentation ceremony, Azmin said without the cooperation from the people, the initiatives in the Budget 2020 cannot be realised and will not be able to benefit target groups.

“Our youths and future generations have to support these initiatives. If they don’t appreciate or make use of these initiatives, the government will not be able to meet the objective of solving problems faced by the people,” he said in reference to the Education Ministry which is the biggest recipient of the Budget 2020 with an allocation of RM64.1 billion, RM3.9 billion more than this year’s allocation.

When tabling the Budget 2020 yesterday, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said from that amount, RM735 million will be used for the maintenance and upgrading of schools.

Last Saturday, Azmin reportedly said the SPV2030 will be a blueprint blueprint that will provide the “turbo charge” needed to boost the country’s economic development.

He said the new vision aims to ensure shared wealth for the country that would benefit Malaysians from all walks of life.