Not many knew of the existence of the National Trust Fund (KWAN) until the government — using its emergency powers — decided to tap into it to procure Covid-19 vaccines and meet any other related expenses incurred. The fund was set up in 1988 to help build up the country’s wealth and prepare it when resources from oil and other commodities are depleted. It is also known as the National Heritage Fund. Towards meeting this objective, when crude oil was north of US$90 per barrel (and even breached the US$100 barrier) for a few years before prices collapsed in June 2014, Petronas contributed to the fund aggressively. Other commodity sectors — such as timber, oil palm and rubber — are supposed to contribute too but, so far, only Petronas has done so.