Admittedly, Malaysia has not had many great opportunities to rise to leadership in any sort of viable or high potential industries. This is compounded by the fact that Malaysia is neither the cheapest place to run a factory, nor well-equipped and well-run enough to be host to the regional HQs of the largest companies. Simply put, Malaysia today just does not have the comparative advantages available to countries like China, India or Singapore.

As such, every high potential opportunity available to our country must be pursued ardently, including the growing halal industry recently spotlighted at the inaugural World Halal Forum held at Kuala Lumpur a few weeks back. It is said to be already a US$500 billion-a-year industry, and with the ever-increasing Muslim population, the halal industry’s growth opportunities are almost infinite.

Malaysia’s key comparative advantage is clear. Malaysia is one of the very few moderate (i.e. scientifically and economically-inclined) Islamic countries in the world with the necessary infrastructure, well-diversified labour force and related resources to provide foreign multinational companies (MNCs) a stable, and relatively low-cost Islamic hub to produce, promote, export and manage their halal products. MNCs will not have to be worried about an overly aggresive religious environment, an unstable political and socio-economic climate, or a ridiculously tight regulatory framework.

In fact, Malaysia fulfills all the necessary qualities to serve as a successful platform not only for the traditional halal food market, but also for financial services and tour packages. Malaysia already has in place multiple Islamic banks with a well-documented Islamic regulatory framework, and a labour force well-suited for the Islamic tour industry given its multi-racial nature. Perhaps its simpler to say that Malaysia is well-suited to be a forerunner in the largely untapped global halal logistics industry.

So, what steps must Malaysia take? In the short to medium run, we should be looking at accelerated efforts to not only promote the strict halal certification process touted by the Government, but also attract foreign MNCs to Malaysia by offering the “standard” tax and infrastructure incentives, not unlike the Transport Ministry’s planned trade mission to Dubai. In the long run, developing a central hub for the halal industry, where supporting industries (e.g. transport and distribution) can take root, should be a key aim.

But of course, the real question still remains. Can the Goverment effectively develop the halal industry in Malaysia without creating the same problems we have seen in prior high potential industries?

Since the currency peg on the Malaysian ringgit was released, we’ve seen the ringgit rise by around 4.8 percent to its current status of US$1 = MYR3.60. While this is predominantly a good thing given its adherence to the free market principles our Government desperately hopes will propel Malaysia’s future development, it hasn’t really helped Malaysian students aiming to go overseas to study as much as we’ve hoped.

Why? Well, the two traditional tertiary education hotspots overseas, i.e. the United Kingdom and United States, have held their own on the foreign exchange market pretty well - especially in recent weeks. The Pound Sterling has recovered much of its strength in the past month, and is now close to returning to the RM 7.00 = 1 Pound threshold UK-bound students know and fear.

But there is hope for the future, at least analysts think so. Recently, it was announced by the ANZ Bank (plus some other organisations) that it is likely that the Malaysian ringgit will appreciate further over 2006 and 2007 due to strong economic prospects, and of course, a weak US dollar. Expectations of higher interest rates have also assisted the ringgit’s rise, and will help underpin a stronger ringgit.

But if the Pound Sterling continues displaying its remarkable strength… urghh, a British education will continue to be hell to pay for. At least students bound for the US have a better outlook given the strong belief that the US Dollar will continue its fall in the medium to long term.

Homosexuality is outlawed in Malaysia (as in quite a number of ASEAN countries), but that is not going to stop a gay and lesbian “travel” guide from attempting to spice up the supposedly hot gay and lesbian scene in Malaysia.

The guide in question is the Utopia Guide to Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, and is the first of such guides for these countries given their stance against homosexuality. Not surprisingly, the editor of Utopia Guides hopes that it will foster greater acceptance of homosexuality in these countries.

But the more interesting thing is that the guide claims that Malaysia has the “hottest gay scene going” (based on surveys conducted from Singapore), even though Islam is the primary religion in Malaysia, and Islam is not supportive of homosexual relationships. In fact, gay sex is punishable by jail in Malaysia.

Anyway, attempting to foster greater acceptance of homosexuality is definitely something positive as it is a major step towards a more open-minded society. But whether the Utopia Guide really aims for something like that is another story. After all, there’s some real money to be made in such a niche.

[News via CANOE Travel]

Wow. That’s a 71-year difference between the guy and the gal. You wouldn’t blink an eye at a difference of 10, 20, or even 30 years, but 71-years? And in Malaysia - an Islamic country, with generally conservative values - too.

If you thought the marriage was all about money, think again. According to news reports, the 104-year-old woman is poor. But I’ve to admit that it was my first line of thought after looking at the age difference and the fact that this is the woman’s 21st marriage. Black magic? Probably not. Sympathy? Probably yes since the guy said that he was initially attracted to her after discovering that she was “…childless, old, and alone.”

But who are we to judge? And should we even judge? With all the talk of producing an open-minded society in Malaysia, unconventional marriages should be accepted instead of looked upon cynically. Of course, I’m not telling you not to look at such issues critically…