Current Affairs

In February this year, China overtook Japan as the second largest economy after the US, while analysts forsee China replacing the US as the world’s top economy in about a decade. Together with India, both markets are expected to become the global economic leaders by 2035. 

Kathleen Tan speaks to Dr Jagdish Sheth, Charles H. Kellstadt Professor of Marketing in the Goizueta Business School and founder of the Center for Relationship Marketing (CRM) at Emory University, US on marketing to Chindia

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Melisa Idris discusses the Economist Intelligence Unit's Malaysia Report for July 2011, with Fung Siu, economist and editor with the EIU in the UK.

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How do Malaysia's Muslim youth feel about their country, their family, their society? How religious are they? Do they care about politics and democracy?

A survey, initiated by the Goethe-Institue and Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, holds some answers. 2,500 young people between 15 to 25 years of age were polled by the Merdeka Center for Opinion Research Malaysia.

Melisa Idris discusses the findings of the Muslim Youth Survey 2010 with Moritz Kliene-Brockhoff, Project Director for Malaysia, Myanmar, Cambodia, with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

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The Millennium Developments Goals are a product of the UN's Millennium Declaration of 2000, which is the first time in world history that 189 world leaders have agreed to concentrate on achieving 8 time-bound goals - to be achieved by 2015.

With under 5 years to go the the target deadline, BFM takes a closer look at how far Malaysia has met its targets and the challenges that lie ahead.

In the last of a three-part series on the Millennium Development Goals, Melisa Idris speaks to Hans Olsen, UNICEF Representative to Malaysia & Special Representative to Brunei, on the second target of the MDGs, which is achieving universal primary education.

MDG2 has a single target: To ensure that by 2015, children everywhere - boys and girls - will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling. It has three indicators: rates of participation, completion and literacy.

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This year, Malaysia emerged among the top middle income markets in INSEAD's Global Innovation Index, despite falling to the 31st spot from No. 28 last year. 

BFM's Kathleen Tan speaks to Bruno Lanvin, executive director of INSEAD's eLab to find out more about the results. 

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The legalisation and amnesty exercise for illegal workers, codenamed "6P", will take off on Aug 1st. The exercise, which was supposed to kick off on July 11th, was postponed to make way for the implementation of the biometric registration of legal foreign workers.

Today on Current Affairs, Melisa Idris speaks with Supermax Corp Group MD, Dato' Seri Stanley Thai, about possible implementation issues of the labour amnesty programme for companies.

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The IEA believes that the removal of subsidies for fossil fuels will help foster the growth of renewable energy.

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Are Malaysian IPPs inefficient? Research by the non-profit think tank, Research for Social Advancement (REFSA) seems to suggest so. Melisa Idris speaks to Teh Chi-Chang, Executive Director of REFSA, on the matter. 

Recently in the news report "IPPs do not benefit from gas subsidy", the Minister of Energy, Water and Green Technologies Datuk Peter Chin, along with Tenaga Nasional Berhad's chief operating officer, Azman Mohd, had reportedly said that Malaysia's average electricity tariff s 47.31 sen per kWh is gas prices were to be allowed to rise to the market level of RM 40.70 per mmBTU.

According to REFSA, Encik Azman could be quoting an average for all independent power producers (IPPs) including the ones that use coal. And with a sole focus on coal, REFSA has estimated that gas IPP power would cost 59 sen/kWh with gas at RM40.70 per mmBTU.

REFSA's 59 sen/kWH estimate of the cost of gas IPP power is calculated as follows:

a) For the six months ended Feb 2011, the IPP's charged an average of 25.4 sen. This was with gas being priced at RM10.70/mmBTU;
b) The total fuel bill for the IPP's, with gas at RM 10.70, was RM2.973bn.
c) If the gas priced is raised to RM40.70, the total fuel bill will be RM11.307bn (40.70/10.70 x RM2.973);
d) So, there would be an additional RM8.335bn (RM11.307bn-RM2.973bn) of fuel cost that IPPs will pass-through;
e) Based on the 24,858 GWh of power generated by the IPPs, that works out to an additional 33.5 sen/kWh;
f) So, IPP power would cost 59 sen (25.4 sen + 33.5 sen)

For more information, please visit www.refsa.org

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The Oxford Business Group recently launched its inaugural Sabah Report on the Sabah Development Corridor, and its growth sectors. 

Kathleen Tan speaks with Paulius Kuncinas, the Asian Regional Editor of the Oxford Business Group on the report.

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The Arab Spring has received copious attention in the media, but one of its crucial elements has been largely overlooked: the striking role of women in the protests sweeping the Arab world. Despite inadequate media coverage of their role, women have been and often remain at the forefront of those protests.

Melisa Idris discusses this with Dr Nawal el Saadawi, an Egyptian author, women's rights activist, physician and psychiatrist. She is one of the most widely translated contemporary Egyptian writers, with her work available in twelve languages.

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