LETTER | Strengthening the ringgit: Here are some tips

LETTER | Our currency is losing value due to two main reasons, high interest rates in the US (between 5.25 percent and 5.50 percent) and a slowdown in China's economy.

Plus, major countries like the UK and Japan are going through economic recessions, which is making things worse for us. As we rely heavily on exports and imports, we're feeling the pinch more than others.

One way to boost the ringgit is by raising interest rates locally. However, this could hurt people with bank loans, so the central bank is being careful about it.

They also say that our currency's decline doesn't truly reflect our overall economy, which is still growing - just at a slower pace.

To make our currency stronger in the long run, we need to cut back on imports by making more things at home, like growing more food locally and reducing our reliance on migrant workers.

For instance, prioritising the cultivation of 5,000 hectares of paddy fields in Sabah and Sarawak is a smart step to lessen our reliance on imported rice.

We also need to give businesses good reasons to invest here, like offering attractive tax policies.

And, of course, we have to keep our political situation stable and our policies honest to build trust with foreign investors.

Meanwhile, the central bank also needs to manage our money smartly, like our neighbours in Singapore do, by saving up reserves. Having a good stash of reserves helps us control our currency's value better.

Writer is a senior fellow of Institute of Big Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, Universiti Teknologi Mara.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.