THE RISE OF HUMAN ECONOMY POST COVID-19 PANDEMIC

BY DR RASHIDAH KAMARULZAMAN

The year 2020 started with the COVID-19 pandemic. All over the globe, people were affected with the virus, which have caused several countries to opt for serious preventive measures such as total lockdown and movement restrictions. Amongst the top strict measures taken by most countries that were severely hit by the pandemic include the banning of travels abroad, closing nonessential businesses or services, and selfisolation. On one hand, the positive impact caused by the measures above-mentioned is breaking the chain of the virus to spread further. On the other part however, the pandemic is potentially the beginning of a global economic fallout.

Ever since there were major lockdowns in the affected areas, share markets around the world have tremendously dropped, unemployment rates have increased, and oil prices have dropped. Furthermore, the transportation industry, specifically the airline sector is at stake due to the closing down of factories and businesses. Other industries which are affected include the food, tourism and manufacturing industries. With the ban on travelling and lockdown, the food supply chain is heavily interrupted. There are major disruptions on imports and exports of foods whether they are processed or fresh food. Travelling is no longer an option to consumers as most of the countries are closing their doors to tourists. As most of the employees are under strict movement, most manufacturing companies have no other choice but to close down their business.

At times like this, a huge transformation of economy is much needed. One thing the COVID-19 has taught most of us is that, economy greed is getting to an end. The solution for the economic downfall is to have a more humanistic economy.

TRANSFORMATION TO HUMAN ECONOMY

The world has never seen anything worse than the COVID-19 pandemic. The new coronavirus greatly impacts the global social, economic and health crisis. In terms of health, most countries are doing their utmost best to flatten the virus from spreading. However, this move will undeniably deteriorate the economic situation further especially when it involves the developing countries. In Malaysia, the Prime Minister has announced the Economic Stimulus Package (PRIHATIN) in order to curb the economic crisis. However, this will not be a long-term answer towards improving the nation’s economy. It is therefore the right time to transform Knowledge Economy into Human Economy. What then, is Human Economy?

The simplest definition of Human Economy is the economy which is made and remade by the people. There is democracy in human economy which makes it unique. Human Economy bridges the gap between human beings and the humanity. What is important in Human Economy is value, i.e. doing the right thing is what counts.

In understanding the Human Economy, we take the example of Makcik Kiah who has recently been forced to take unpaid leave from her job due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a single mother, she has to pay for all the necessities for her family which includes rental, utilities, education, and to provide food for her children. On top of that, Makcik Kiah also needs to care for her parents whereby her mother requires dialysis on a monthly basis and her father, who is a heart patient, requires extra care for his heart problems. As the bills continue to increase and with no pay leave, MakcikKiah has to resort to selling ‘pisang goreng’ to pay her bills. She also does a part-time job as a personal shopper for the people in her neighbourhood. Knowing that she has to pay for a lot of things, the owner of the Petronas petrol station in her neighbourhood was willing to give her credit to pay for her daily fuel. The owner has gone beyond the norms of his business because he knows that what he is doing is the right thing to do. He believes that by giving the customer credit, is adds values to his business and builds a good image to his company. Caring for customers is a human factor.

Humans have desires and needs. An example of this would be the desire and need to become a part of society. In view of this, Human Economy is about the sharing of economy or the collaboration of economy. Capitalism is no longer in control in the human economic theory. Organisations do business not merely for the purpose of increasing their wealth in terms of profit but more towards contributing to the society at large. The drives of doing business in the Human Economy has shifted towards doing things ethically right and with added value in consideration of human and society. Businesses are no longer bound by rules but the move towards sharing of responsibility. Good values such as truth, trust, moral authority and passion are among the foundations of Human Economy. Organisations such as Air BnB, pitchIn, Mystatr, Uber and MyCar are among those that promote these values. The existence of these organisations is due to the need to resolve the problems of human in dealing with their daily life activities.

By humanising the economy, problems such as corruption, bribery, inequality and cronyism can be reduced. No longer will people be getting business opportunities based on whom they know, instead, the opportunity is based on what they know. This is the time to get rid of cronyism among multimillion organisations. By humanising the economy, it will promote innovation and creativity among the businesses to stay ahead of their competitors, usage of optimisation, sharing of technology and sustaining nature.

WHAT REALLY MATTERS

Critical times such as the current COVID-19 pandemic have and aare still affecting all businesses in Malaysia. The answer towards this critical situation is Human Economy. Human Economy is about the people and for the people. It will benefit everyone regardless of the race and religion. This is the answer to the economic problems that have been created by the COVID- 19 pandemic. Malaysia should set an example to the world that not only has it dealt successfully with the health crisis by taking specific and necessary measures, but that it has also dealt with the economic crisis following the said pandemic.

Dr Rashidah Kamarulzaman Dr Rashidah Kamarulzaman is currently attached to the University College of Technology Sarawak (UCTS) as the Head of Programme, Bachelor of Technology Management, School of Business and Management. Prior to UCTS, she has worked in various industries for 17 years, both locally and abroad.