The Sunday Mail
Indigenisation and economic empowerment policies have recorded success in other parts of the world and was instrumental in the economic growth of Asian countries.
Oriental states achieved tremendous economic success over the past decades in what is commonly referred to as the “economic miracle” of Asia. In Malaysia, economic growth was anchored on what was termed as the New Economic Policy (NEP).
NEP was a 20-year programme implemented between 1970 and 1990. It involved affirmative action and re-distributing wealth from the upper class — who were mainly of Britsh, Chinese and Indian descent — to the indigenous people.
As a result of NEP, Malaysia recorded a sustained annual economic growth rate of around 8 percent and was successful in empowering its people and reducing poverty.
The four Asian tigers — Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan — also pose examples of how home-grown solutions and empowering locals can lead to massive economic spin-offs.
Hong Kong and Singapore are among the biggest financial centres of the world, while South Korea and Taiwan are hubs famed for the global manufacturing industry.
Closer to home, South Africa adopted the Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) programme to undo the socio-economic injustices created by apartheid. BEE saw the emergence of a crop of successful black businessman like Vice-President Cyril Ramaphosa and billionaire Patrice Motsepe, among others. — SMR/Wires
