KUCHING, May 14: Sarawak is on the right track in emulating other countries to establish a sovereign fund that will focus on saving for future generations.
Political analyst Dato Peter Minos said that governments like Norway and Singapore, which are small nations, chose to establish sovereign funds.
“Norway saves and invests its vast oil and gas wealth, now worth over USD1 trillion, very prudently in safe and suitable areas worldwide.
“It only spends on the yearly interests and dividends for development and then the remaining ploughing back for more investments.
“The interests and dividends from the sovereign fund plus other revenues are enough for Norwegians to have the best living standard and livelihood.
“Norwegians, all of them, worry little on education, healthcare and many other things as their government looks after its people very well in a so-called friendly socialism way,” he said in a statement today.
Minos also mentioned that Singapore, despite having few natural resources except the people’s skills, intelligence and grit, too chose to save up into its sovereign fund.
“Many developing nations have some oil and gas wealth but squander them all. When such natural resources are depleted or gone, they will become poor. That is the way of the unwise and badly-run nations. We must have none of these,” he added.
Minos further said if Sarawak emulates the sovereign fund approach, it will be able to save up a lot of money just from Petronas and Petros alone every year. — DayakDaily
