The Ninth Malaysia Plan will spell out strategies for boosting economic growth and spreading wealth more equally in the ethnically diverse nation. It will be the first blueprint handed down by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi since he took the helm in 2003.

Abdullah is also likely to table initiatives to see a better distribution of wealth amongst Malays after criticisms that previous economic programmes benefited a small elite.

While his predecessor, Dr Mahathir Mohammed, emphasised industrial and technological development that included the information technology city Cyber Jaya, the world's tallest twin towers, and a national car, Abdullah will put education, agriculture and the development of rural areas at the heart of his plan.

The Ninth Malaysia Plan, covering this year to 2010, is expected to cost of about 200 billion ringgit (Bt2.1 trillion), compared to 170 billion ringgit for the previous five-year plan.

Five years ago, when Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra came to power, there were high hopes that his policies would give a lift to the poor and empower local communities.

But Thailand remains one of the world's most unequal nations. Instead of bridging the gap between the haves and the have-nots, Thaksin exploited the gap for political gain. He tossed cash and loans at the poor, drove them and the country further into debt and labelled this quick fix a national poverty-alleviation scheme.

While the Malaysian government has focused on income distribution, the Thaksin administration chose to focus on economic stimulus policies to inflate economic growth by providing low-interest loans. Issues like capacity building and the sustainability of these investments aimed at boosting small enterprises were neglected.

The Bt80 billion revolving credit given to poor villagers has done little to boost productivity or capacity. For many it was their first opportunity to get a cheap loan. They rushed to mobile-phone shops and motorbike dealers. Thaksin funded a shopping spree not sustainable development.

As evidence that his policy has failed to live up to its initial hype, farmers have already arrived in Bangkok asking for debt forgiveness.

Yesterday, a group of farmers went to state-run Krung Thai Bank to demand debt forgiveness as they have seen some of their peers succeed in pressing the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives to forgive debts accumulated through low-interest loans. Unfortunately, the government's coffers are running on empty and more than ever before, the country needs foreign direct investment.

The Malaysian plan, on the other hand, is likely to serve Abdullah well. If he succeeds, it is very likely that the conservative northern states will swing towards the ruling Umno Party. The Malaysian leader is planning to make the private sector the driving force behind economic growth and has involved it in infrastructure development.

This approach is expected to boost the construction sector, which has suffered since the government halted large construction projects.

When Abdullah took over, many said he had big shoes to fill. Some even said he was too soft for Malaysia's cut-throat politics.

But a few years have passed, and he is still standing tall and going strong. Abdullah's religious credentials came in handy against the Islamist opposition Parti Islam se-Malaysia. They also helped tremendously in defining Malaysia as an ideal Muslim country - modern, progressive, technological savvy and morally correct.

And by bringing an end to the Anwar Ibrahim chapter, Abdullah has obtained the much-needed moral authority to show the world that Malaysia is a model developing country.