KUALA LUMPUR: Many Malaysians have come to see the Covid-19 pandemic as a "blessing in disguise" that is driving a new economy which relies on digitalisation and e-commerce.
EMIR Research's focused group discussion for the Third Quarter 2020 (3Q20) poll showed that a segment of Malaysians are viewing the pandemic as a "moment of truth" that has exposed the country's socioeconomic pitfalls.
The company, in its report, said among the perceived weaknesses are over-reliance on imports in many industries including agriculture; over-reliance on export of oil, general lack of savings by the public as well as general un-preparedness for e-learning and e-commerce.
The report said some respondents even deemed the pandemic as an "IT crash course for all of us" as people from all walks of life have been forced to embrace digital transformation.
EMIR quoted one respondent as saying: "The Movement Control Order (MCO) has made Malaysians become more creative for those doing online business, especially for pasar malam (night markets). People are selling online while delivery is also arranged online."
"If we look from the perspective of the gig economy, there's definitely a lot of start-ups, from the perspective of the government initiatives itself and even careers if we look at the newspapers also.
"For example, gamers, streamers, product reviewers, Tik Tok-ers have become careers and not careers that can be regarded as "small change".