Saturday, February 9, 2013

Gong Xi Fa Chai

Happy holidays!

If you’re driving, stay patient and stay safe. May the year ahead be blessed and prosperous.

Posted by hishamh at 4:23 PM
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2 comments:

  1. AnonymousFebruary 11, 2013 at 11:35 AM

    Hishamh,

    Happy holiday. Have a good rest and looking forward to more interesting article from you on the economic front.

    One issue that is hot, what would be required for Malaysia to provide free tertiary education.

    Zuo De

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    Replies
    1. hishamhFebruary 13, 2013 at 9:20 AM

      Happy holidays Zuo De, hope you're having a good one.

      I don't know about free tertiary education - it can always be done, but the question is what kind of sacrifices have to be made to achieve it.

      Under the circumstances (population growth, need to increase enrollment to developed country levels, improve quality of incoming freshmen) it's going to be an expensive proposition, and not necessarily the best use of public funds even within the education sector.

      Research suggests the best bang for the buck is in universal pre-school and improved primary education. I don't know that just focusing on the student funding side of tertiary education will be cost beneficial to the government, and most particularly for the country (Will it raise future tax revenues? Will it improve future productivity? No and no). Of course that doesn't help us avoid the kind of student debt problems a'la the US, which might have a social benefit of its own, but will that benefit outweigh the cost? I'm dubious.

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