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Malaysia
Physical. Malaysia is located in Southeastern Asia. It is a peninsula and
the northern one-third of the island of Borneo. It borders Indonesia and the
South China Sea, south of Vietnam. Altogether, Malaysia covers an area slightly
larger than New Mexico. The climate there is tropical with yearly monsoons in
the southwest (April to October) and the northeast (October to February). The
terrain is predominately comprised of coastal plains that rise into hills and
mountains. Natural resources include tin, petroleum, copper, iron ore, natural
gas, bauxite and timber.
People. Almost 24.4 million people live in Malaysia. Behasu Melayu is
the official language while English, Chinese dialects, Tamil, and indigenous
languages are spoken as well. Ethnically, the Malay and other indigenous groups
compose 50% of the population, along with Chinese (24%), Indian (7%), and
indigenous groups (11%). The religions practiced in Malaysia include Buddhism,
Hinduism, Daoism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity and traditional beliefs.
Government. Malaysia's capital, Kuala Lumpur, is located midway along
the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Malaysia has 13 administrative states.
Putrajaya is a planned city that acts as a federal government administration
center. Malaysia won its independence from the United Kingdom on August 31,
1957. Its constitution was adopted on the same date and later amended in
September 1963. Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy, with the paramount ruler
and deputy paramount ruler elected by hereditary rulers for five-year terms. The
prime minister is the leader of the party with a plurality of seats in the House
of Representatives.
Economy. Malaysia, a middle-income country, transformed itself from
1971 through the late 1990s from a producer of raw materials into an emerging
multi-sector economy. Growth is almost exclusively driven by exports and, as a
result Malaysia was hard hit by the global economic downturn in 2001, although
fiscal effects were mitigated through aid packages. Although Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and the Iraq War led to caution in business, 2004
saw better than 7% growth followed by 5% in 2005. Benefit from the profits from
oil and gas exports (due to higher world-wide energy prices) has been somewhat
reduced by the cost of government subsidies for domestic gasoline and diesel
fuel. The country's GDP is currently comprised of: agriculture (7%), industry
(33%), and services (60%). Healthy foreign exchange reserves, low inflation, and
a small external debt add to Malaysian economic stability. The economy remains
dependent on continued growth in its top export countries—US, China, and Japan.
Areas of Concern. Water and air pollution (including haze from forest
fires) and deforestation are the nation's primary environmental concerns. An
economic concern is the decline of foreign exchange reserves as foreign
investors withdraw money from Malaysia.
For more information, you may write to the chancery at 3516 International
Court NW, Washington, DC 20008; check the U.S. State Department or World
Factbook country sites; or type in the country's name on the Internet using a
broad-based World Wide Web search engine.
Malaysia statistics
Geography
Area: 329,750 sq km
Capital: Kuala Lumpur (1,479,000)
Environmental concerns: air pollution, water pollution, deforestation,
smoke/haze from Indonesian forest fires
Geographical features: coastal plains rising to hills and mountains
Climate: tropical with annual monsoon in the southwest (April to October) and in
the northeast (October to February)
People
24,386,000 (July 2006 est.) Malay (50%), Chinese (24%), Indigenous (11%), Indian
(7%), others (8%) (2004 est.)
Annual growth rate: 1.78% (2006 est.)
Major languages are Bahasa Melayu (official), English, Chinese (Cantonese,
Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainan, Foochow), Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Panjabi,
Thai and in East Malaysia there are several indigenous languages—most widely
spoken are Iban and Kadazan
Religions: Muslim, Buddhist, Daoist, Hindu, Christian, Sikh; Shamanism is
practiced in East Malaysia
Health and social issues
Life expectancies: male 70; female 75
Infant mortality: 17.16 deaths/1,000 live births
Population below the poverty line: 8% (2003-2004 est.)
1 physician to 2,153 people (2004)
HIV/AIDS Rate in Adults: 0.4% (2003 est.)
88.7% of adults are literate
Compulsory education (Ages): 6-16; free
Communication and transportation
4,446,300 (2004) main telephone lines in use
10.04 million (2005) Internet users
71,814 km of roadways
1,890 km (207 km electrified) railroads
117 (2005) airports
3.948 million motor vehicles (2004)
Government
Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy.
The chief of state is Paramount Ruler Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin ibni Almarhum
Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail, the Raja of Perlis (since 12 December 2001). The
head of the government is Prime Minister Abdullah bin Ahmad Badawi (since 31
October 2003).
Universal suffrage 21 years of age
Military
Military expenditures as a percentage of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is
2.03% (FY00).
Current disputes: disputes over the Spratly Islands; disputes with Singapore
over water deliveries, land reclamation, bridge construction, maritime
boundaries, and islands; disputes over maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich
Celebes Sea; violence in Thailand's predominantly Muslim southern provinces
caused Malaysia to close that border; disputes with Brunei over offshore and
deepwater sea beds and land boundary; piracy in the Malacca Strait
Economy
Currency: ringgit
Per capita GDP: $12,100 (2005 est.)
GDP: $290.2 billion (2005 est.)
GDP growth rate: 5.3% (2005 est.)
Inflation rate: 2.9% (2005 est.)
Labor force: agriculture (15%), industry (36%) services (50%)
Resources and industry
Natural resources: tin, petroleum, timber, copper, iron ore, natural gas,
bauxite
Agriculture: Peninsular Malaysia - rubber, palm oil, cocoa, rice; Sabah -
subsistence crops, rubber, timber, coconuts, rice; Sarawak - rubber, pepper,
timber
Industry: Peninsular Malaysia - rubber and oil palm processing and
manufacturing, light manufacturing industry, electronics, tin mining and
smelting, logging, timber processing; Sabah - logging, petroleum production;
Sarawak - agriculture processing, petroleum production and refining, logging
Exports: $147.1 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports: $118.7 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Suggested web sites
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/malaysia
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