PUTRAJAYA, March 16 — Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today announced the members of the Economic Action Council (EAC), formed under the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government, in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak and falling oil prices.
In a press conference today, Muhyiddin announced the appointment of The Edge Media Group’s owner Datuk Tong Kooi Ong, Sunway Group’s founder Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah and Westports Malaysia Sdn Bhd executive chairman, Tan Sri G. Gnanalingam, among others, to the Council.
The trio are part of the Supreme Committee of the EAC, apart from Muhyiddin and several others, including Minister of International Trade and Industry, Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali; Finance Minister, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Aziz; Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of economic affairs, Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed; and Bank Negara (BNM) Governor, Datuk Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus.
Others include the executive chairman of the EAC, Tan Sri Noor Azlan Ghazali; Mercy Malaysia founder, Tan Sri Dr Jemilah Mahmood; and Celcom Axiata Berhad Group chairman, Tan Sri Jamaludin Ibrahim.
“The EAC would be helped by a technical committee, which would be preparing daily reports regarding the global and domestic economy situations. This committee would be made up of representatives from the Ministry of Finance (MOF), the Economic Planning Unit (EPU), the Prime Minister’s Department (JPM), BNM and the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM),” Muhyiddin said during a press conference, after chairing the first EAC meeting here.
“Several working groups have been established to monitor the development and challenges faced at the sectoral level and provide inputs and solutions. Among the key sectors are tourism, the labour market, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), construction, retail and the food industry.
“The number of working groups can be increased from time to time as required. Each working group will be led jointly by the government and the private sector,” he added.
Last week, Muhyiddin announced the formation of the EAC, to address economic problems caused by Covid-19 outbreak and plummeting oil prices.
He said the council will meet weekly to discuss the issues and seek solutions.
* A previous version of this story contained an error which has since been corrected.
