Southeast Asian countries deserve credit for their cooperative approach towards food security-related policies, a method that has proved effective in stabilising rice stocks and prices.
Future population size, which new research suggests has been overestimated, is not the primary factor behind planetary problems like climate change. Instead, the world's wealthiest are producing the largest material footprint.
Malaysia seeks to ensure that the poor benefit from fuel subsidies instead of the rich, but rationalisation can also contribute towards sustainability. Savings from removing fuel subsidies can be used to develop low-carbon alternatives.