This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on January 1, 2018 - January 7, 2018

When the government led by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad revealed Vision 2020 in 1990, detractors were sceptical whether Malaysia, a largely agrarian country back then with a fledgling industrial sector, could become a developed country, on a par with the likes of Japan and the West.

Almost 30 years and two economic crises later, Malaysia is still struggling to define itself as a developed country. Where are we now? Professor Dr Yeah Kim Leng, director of economic studies at the Jeffrey Cheah Institute on Southeast Asia, gives his assessment of the country’s standing.

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