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He also urged Asian countries to use the English language as a common lingua franca in the region.
He said while most Malaysians could speak two or three languages, including English, there were still several Asian countries where businessmen had problems in communicating for business purposes.
The Berjaya Corporation boss said he was once in Vietnam and was told that they had a population problem which could affect their economy.
“I told them population is an asset. It moves business.
“But have an educated population, I told them. Teach them to speak English.
“It would be easier for investors to do business in their country,” he said during The Economic Times-Asian Business Leaders Conclave, a two-day event to promote business ties between India and Malaysia held here.
Vietnam’s population was 90 million in 2013.
Tan added that Thai businessmen were now slowly picking up English, and that other Asian countries, too, were realising the power of speaking and writing in the English language.
“Since there are so many languages in Asia, English would be a binding factor. It will promote business, too,” he added.
Tan said he started investing in India 20 years ago and “never faced a problem as people there spoke English”.
“I started by building office blocks in New Delhi. Then I moved into opening lottery outlets in Mumbai in the 1990s but my application was rejected after the Shiv Sena political party took over the Maharashtra state.
“But the point is I never had communication problems there.”
Tan also said Asia was the next powerhouse due to the population explosion.
“Look at China. Imagine if they had only 130 million; would they be the super power of today? The same with India. It is a powerhouse due to the buying capacity there.
“If Malaysia had a population of 200 million, imagine the number of businesses that could be opened.”
He said if China and India join in the “United States of Asia” group, it would give Asia a stronger voice.
“We should be as borderless as we can. We can live peacefully. No one should go to war. Of course, the only war we should have is ‘economic war’.”
Tan was also asked by a participant in the conclave if Asia should have a single currency.
“It does not make sense to have one Asian currency. Which currency do we use? Is it the Sing (Singapore) dollar? That would be so expensive.
“And there are some currencies in Asia with so many zeros at the back like the Indonesian rupiah or the dong in Vietnam. It can be confusing.”
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