Brain drain has been growing at an average rate of six per cent per annum. There's now an estimated two million Malaysians living and working abroad.
It's recognised that the economic costs of the brain drain to Malaysia would be lower gross domestic product (GDP) and, therefore, in the region of billions by now.
The setting up of Talent Corporation (Talent Corp) within the framework of the New Economic Model (NEM) and the Tenth Malaysia Plan (10MP) to attract talent by positioning us as a competitive talent hub and also reverse the brain drain was to parallel the role of Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) in attracting capital, i.e., foreign direct investment.
Therefore, revitalising the role and function of Talent Corp should be a lynchpin in our fresh effort to reverse the brain drain trend.
According to Talent Corp, "[i]n contrast to cities that host many expatriates, Malaysia's highly skilled expatriate base has been shrinking since 2004" at a compound annual growth rate of -9 per cent.
To nip the problem in the bud, EMIR Research would like focus on the following policy recommendations:
Firstly, the dissatisfaction that leads to the eventual brain drain lies in the transition from secondary to tertiary education.
Nurture talent regardless of ethnic background. Public Service Department (JPA) scholarships should be substantially increased for non-Bumiputeras.
In parallel, the scholarship schemes under and internship opportunities with government-linked companies (GLCs), government-linked investment companies (GLICs) and subsidiaries (locally and globally) should be expanded for non-Bumiputeras.
Last but not least, non-Bumiputeras should be groomed for leadership roles in the GLCs, GLICs and their subsidiaries.
Secondly, wider policy base of foreign talent attraction. According to a PWC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) report, "Greater Kuala Lumpur: Bridge between Asia and the World" (2017), Kuala Lumpur is among the top 10 cities in Asia.
We are third among 34 upper middle-income countries on the Global Innovation Index (GII) by the World Intellectual Property Organization (Wipo) and 12th in the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business ranking.
Ernst and Young's "KL Calling 2020" report has highlighted that the capital city's green and recreational space per capita is projected to double by 2020 with 2.5 million street trees targeted by 2030.
Bandar Malaysia should be revived, reconceptualised and repositioned to be KL's self-contained talent hub together with the Tun Razak Exchange.
This requires concerted effort by Invest KL and Talent Corp, among others, to attract capital and talent tailored-incentives such as special tax concessions.
Other examples include the Ministry of Federal Territories and KL City Hall can implement tax incremental financing (TFI) based on the status of Bandar Malaysia as a special zone – rates collected will be used only for that area.
Thirdly, retaining (and reversing the outflow of) local talent. The government should consider forming a Silicon Valley for research and development (R&D) in the bio-medical and life sciences, green and renewable technologies, etc.
This would geographically and infrastructurally synchronise with the Malaysia Vision Valley (MVV) 2.0 – which encompasses the new conurbation of Nilai and Seremban with new developments of new townships – enhancing liveability and ease of communication.
This area could be established as a Digital and Futurist Hub in Cyberjaya due to its proximity to both the concentrations of leading higher educational institutions (as key stakeholders as well) and Putrajaya.
The Ministry of Science and Technology (Mosti) should commit to increasing investment in R&D. Perhaps a target of three per cent of our GDP should be set as an annual minimum.
According to the World Bank, Malaysia's R&D was 1.4 per cent of GDP in 2016 from below 0.7 per cent in 2006.
It declined to slightly below 1 per cent as at 2018. In contrast, South Korea's R&D spending was almost 5 per cent of GDP, with Singapore at more than 2 per cent.
The National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy 2021-2030, envisages efforts to intensify Malaysia from being technology users to technology developers intensifying local technology development and applications – which is only possible with higher R&D expenditure.
In the final analysis, higher R&D expenditure coupled with that paradigm shift will send a signal to our talent abroad that we are steadily evolving and ready to welcome them back home.
The writer is Head of Social, Law & Human Rights at EMIR Research, an independent think tank focussed on strategic policy recommendations based on rigorous research
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times