However, the more stringent requirements for joining the CPTPP, presently the gold standard for regional trade agreements, will enable Malaysia to build back better and faster. Similarly, the digital trade provisions in the CPTPP will help create an enabling digital policy environment for the Malaysian digital economy to grow and scale. Building Malaysia’s trade policy principles through both the CPTPP and RCEP will enhance the sustainability of the country’s competitiveness. It has been more than five years since Malaysia signed the original Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement and almost three years since the CPTPP. Malaysia not ratifying the CPTPP does not mean status quo for the country’s economy; rather, it will set Malaysia back.
