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PETALING JAYA: Business groups have given diverse views about Malaysia’s entry ban on citizens of 23 countries to prevent more imported cases.
Although the move might delay how their industries operate, these businesses nonetheless felt that things are moving in the right direction.
SME Association president Datuk Michael Kang thanked the government, specifically the Health Ministry, for giving the details on how the risk assessment was conducted on these countries to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“It is definitely important for the business sector. We need to make sure that all Covid-19 cases are monitored to protect economic movements, ” he said.
Last week, the ministry outlined its risk management plan, which was developed given the spike in the number of imported cases in Malaysia.
It listed out six criteria in assessing a country, such as the number of deaths, total number of cases per one million population in the past fortnight and its recovery index.
The countries involved are the United States, Brazil, India, Russia, Peru, Colombia, South Africa, Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Chile, Iran, United Kingdom, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, France, Turkey, Italy, Germany, Iraq, the Philippines and Indonesia.
Tighter border controls have led to many businesses being concerned over the impact on their operations, especially as health authorities have warned that there may be a spike in Covid-19 cases during the winter season in some of these countries.
Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers president Tan Sri Soh Thian Lai had said that a survey showed that businesses were concerned about supply chain disruptions.
Malay Economic Action Council chief executive officer Ahmad Yazid Othman said the list was a good start but it would affect how industries operate and the speed in getting things done.
“It may also delay the procurement of experts or human resources (from outside the country). However, this is still necessary in the fight against the pandemic, where we have been recognised as a leader internationally in the battle against Covid-19, ” he said.
“We hope all the measures taken by the government will be worth it in the end.”
Source: https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2020/09/13/sme-risk-assessment-vital