KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has been acknowledged as the No. 1 country in Southeast Asia and 19th in the world in its battle against the Covid-19 pandemic.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said he was upbeat that the country and the economy will recover, elevating the livelihood of the people when Malaysia transitions from the Covid-19 pandemic phase into endemicity on April 1.
In his winding-up speech at the 2021 Umno general assembly today, Ismail Sabri who is the Umno Vice-President said the country's economy continued to register growth since the party returned to head the Federal Government.
"There are many quarters who had cast doubt on the government's ability to recover the (nation's) economy (from the impact brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic).
"Alhamdulillah, since Umno returned to leading the federal government, the economy of the country has expanded by 3.6 per cent during the fourth quarter compared to it contracting by 4.5 per cent during the third quarter of last year.
"The country's total exports has increased to RM28.2 billion (for August until December 2021).
"The economy of the country is further strengthened and supported by the influx of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of RM24.7 billion during the fourth quarter compared to RM12.8 billion during the third quarter," he said.