Malaysia must take advantage of the positive trend in the global market for medical devices industry by positioning the nation as a preferred destination among foreign investors.
Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Malaysia could strengthen its global market competitiveness by providing a conducive business environment for multinational companies .
This, he said, would encourage greater inflow of foreign capital as well as technology that will subsequently accelerate growth for the country.
“The medical device industry is expected to impact positively on the Malaysian economy. It has been designated as one of the ‘3+2’ high-growth sub-sectors under the 11th Malaysian Plan.
“For instance, Malaysia is the world’s largest producer and leading exporter of rubber gloves, contributing 63 percent of the global supply.
“The Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers Association (MARGMA) estimated that the global demand for rubber gloves this year is at 300 billion gloves with an expected annual growth of 12 per cent.
It is also estimated that 188 billion gloves will be produced by Malaysia this year,” said Dr Mahathir in his speech at the International Medical Device Conference (IMDC), Malaysia Medical Device Expo 2019 (MYMEDEX) and Medical Innovation Exhibition and Conference 2019 (MEDINOVA) here today.
Present was Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
According to records from the Malaysian Investment Development Authority, Dr Mahathir said the total investments approved for medical gloves manufacturing in Malaysia stood at RM4.2 billion from 2014 to 2018.
He said export revenue of rubber gloves from Malaysia increased from RM5.9 billion in 2007 to RM17.74 billion in 2018.
As for this year, he said the export revenue was projected to reach a total of RM19.88 billion.
“Everyone in the business has a role to play. The Malaysian Government through the Medical Device Authority should be supported by the private sectors, non-governmental organisations as well as the higher learning institutions.”
He also pointed out the crucial role of industry players to continue innovating and revolutionising processes and business models in the medical devices industry.
“As the nation moves towards Industry 4.0, the accelerating pace of innovation in the medical devices industry is evidenced by local companies beginning to undertake research and development into their manufacturing processes.”
Dr Mahathir later said that he was glad to learn about new medical devices especially those invented by Malaysians.
“I am very glad to see new devices that will help doctors to treat their patients.
“For example now you do not have to go through a dialysis centre to get treatment and go through the process of cleaning the blood.
“There is a new system, which can be done in the house by the patient himself. This will not only save costs but also enable the patient to stay at home and be treated.”
Source: New Straits Times