Kuala Lampur, Jan. 3 -- Serving in government for close to six years has been a deeply rewarding and humbling

journey.

Holding responsibility across both the finance and trade portfolios has offered me a rare vantage point into the realities of economic policymaking - where ambition must constantly be balanced against constraint, and long-term reform often competes with short-term pressures.

My baptism of fire during the Covid-19 crisis reinforced a simple truth: economic management is never conducted under ideal conditions.

Policymakers operate within fiscal limits, social realities, and external shocks beyond their control.

Decisions are rarely about perfect outcomes; more often, they involve trade-offs, sequencing, and sustaining ...