THE Menu Rahmah initiative to offer meals for only RM5 at selected food outlets should be a temporary solution and Putrajaya must find other ways to boost the economy and improve wages, economists said.

They said that while it was a good initiative the programme needs to be integrated with other measures to contain the high cost of living especially on food prices and the government should also look into increasing wages. 

Sunway University economics professor Yeah Kim Leng said that the government must enhance food security which not only encompasses costs but nutritional value.

“For now the Menu Rahmah is helpful for those who can’t afford meals by patronising participating outlets.

“But, this so-called solution or measure needs to accompany the government’s initiative in providing affordable food targeted at the specific group (B40),” he told The Malaysian Insight. 

Last week, restaurant operators and food sellers had started the Menu Rahmah meal plan introduced by the unity government to ease the poor’s burdens, even if it meant reduced revenue for them.

The Menu Rahmah initiative was launched by Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Salahuddin Ayub. Under the scheme, meals would be priced at RM5 per serving at nearly 15,000 food outlets nationwide. 

Yeah said that given the current conditions the people are still emerging from the Covid-19 pandemic where they have lost their jobs and fallen below the poverty line so they need immediate assistance. 

“The affordable food is a temporary measure. In the immediate and long run the government needs to create more high value jobs and raise productivity which in turn will lead to wage increases.

“This will allow the country to emerge quickly out of the lingering effects of the pandemic faced by households and businesses.

“It will diminish over time when our economic growth is sustainable and people start to have more money.”

As for raising the income level of Malaysians, he said that it is related to the dynamism of the country’s economy. 

“A key component is how strong the country’s investment is so that it can lead to a high standard of living.

“We have to sustain investment that leads to higher value activities which require highly skilled labour that involves high paying jobs.

“The key is productivity for income increases which is an antidote to the high cost of living and inflation,” said the academic.

Yeah said that is the kind of productivity growth the government needs to promote. There must also be a skilled workforce and entrepreneurs who are tech savvy to drive business growth.

“Food aid is a symptom of problems in the income level, which is due to low income and rising costs that needs to be addressed.

“The root cause is stagnant and low wages, low productivity and less attractive investments.

“The government needs to create a conducive and attractive investment climate.”

He added that to do that there must be political stability, policy continuities and clear direction for economic growth.

“Then it will build investors’ confidence in the economy.”

Institut Masa Depan Malaysia (Masa) honorary fellow Madeline Berma also agreed that while Menu Rahmah is a good initiative with budget-friendly food, it is not the solution to the rising cost of living.

“It is just one of the ways to reduce food budgets. Also, it helps to create awareness as poverty and hunger are not always visible in Malaysia.

“The Menu Rahmah initiative can help create awareness about those who suffer from food insecurity and malnutrition as a result of poverty.”

She also said the move should create awareness among food secure individuals about this serious crisis that many low-income Malaysians suffer from.

Madeline said one of the solutions is for policymakers to protect low-income families from large income losses and ensure their access to food.

“Raise low income support. It is the bottom 40% of Malaysians who are most affected by the cost of living crisis because around 90% of their spending is on ‘essentials’ which have been hardest hit by rising prices.

“Introduce more work-from-home days to help staff cut fuel and transport costs.”

She said the government can establish an energy bill support scheme where the government will give every household energy discounts for their electricity bill. 

“This scheme should be targeted at low income households to help with high electricity bills.” –  February 12, 2023.