Malaysian economy: industries and agriculture

2023 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-26 12:05

Malaysia is one of the countries in Southeast Asia. Its western part is located in the south of the Malay Peninsula, and the eastern part is in the north of the island of Kalimantan.

The state structure of the country is a federal constitutional monarchy. Economically, Malaysia is quite developed, and the living conditions of the population are favorable. There is a large proportion of the middle class, and relatively few poor and rich. The main sectors of the Malaysian economy are industry, agriculture, foreign trade and tourism.

Geographical characteristic

The relief is quite varied. Both the island and the mainland have mountain ranges. The highest point is Mount Kinabalu. The climate on the plains is hot, humid, equatorial. The weather changes little throughout the year.

The average temperature for the year is +27 degrees, and the annual amount of precipitation is approx. 2500 mm. The weather also depends ondistrict. The higher elevations receive more precipitation than the coast.

Most of the territory of Malaysia is occupied by forests. They are characterized by a large species diversity. However, every year their area decreases. This is due to intensive logging and expansion of agricultural land, especially oil palm plantations. Now most of the forests are concentrated within the boundaries of national parks. Air pollution, catching fish and animals, and a large amount of solid household waste have a negative impact on the environment. Almost half of the rivers have poor quality water.

For the economy, the natural conditions of Malaysia are quite favorable. Here you can grow tropical fruits, palm trees, rubber trees. Forests have a lot of wood. In the seas you can get fish and seafood. With the rational use of natural resources, the rapid development of tourism is possible.

Education and he althcare

The educational system in this country is quite well developed. Its development largely affects economic progress, making Malaysia closer to developed than to developing countries. There are 2 ministries. There is a system of public free schools, but residents can also use the services of private or study at home. Only primary education is compulsory. However, more and more people have higher education, and teachers and teachers are quite we althy people with a good social status.

The main language in the educational system isMalay. Separate schools use Chinese, and until 1981 there were also English-based schools. Such a narrow language orientation causes dissatisfaction among representatives of other countries, especially China.

Medicine in Malaysia is divided into private and public. In the first case, the most modern equipment is used, and in the second, the situation is more variegated. State medicine is mainly developed in large cities of the country.

Malaysian economy in brief

Malaysia is a fairly developed country. Among the states of Southeast Asia, it is in third place in terms of economic volume, and in the world - only 38th. Here, labor productivity is high, and a large number of specialists have higher education. Annual GDP growth was 6.5%, which is a very high figure. In 2014, it was $337 billion. Until the 1980s, the structure of the economy was dominated by the extraction of raw materials and agriculture. Then the industry began to grow rapidly. However, the country is still an important exporter of oil and other natural resources and agricultural products. The subsoil of this state contains approximately 4.3 billion barrels of proven oil reserves. Palm oil is produced in large quantities.

Knowledge-intensive industries are also well developed. Malaysia manufactures and exports microelectronics and electrical products. It ranks first in the world in terms of manufacturing domestic air conditioners and electronic chips. The automotive industry is on the rise. Activelydefense enterprises are developing.

Unlike neighboring states, the Malaysian economy recovered from the economic crisis of 1997 rather quickly.

Tourism sector

Tourism plays an important role in the economy of this country. In 2009, Malaysia ranked 9th in the attendance ranking, one line behind Germany. As a source of foreign exchange, tourism ranks third here. In 2018, tourism revenue generated almost $60 billion for the country. People with different family budgets come here.

The greatest interest for visitors is the virgin nature and wild beaches, suitable for diving in some places. Important objects of visiting are national parks, the main part of which is located in the eastern part (Kalimantan Island). Of some importance are large cities where visitors visit architecture (traditional, modern and colonial).

In many ways, the country is facing a choice: move along the industrial path to the detriment of tourism development, or vice versa. In the event of further deforestation and environmental pollution, the tourist attraction of the territory will be threatened.

Transport sector

The transport system, as befits a developed economy, is well developed. There are a lot of airports in Malaysia (58, of which 37 are passenger and 8 have international status). The total length of roads is 98.7 thousand km, with a hard surface - 80.3 thousand km, and motorways - 1.8 thousand km. In the peninsular part, the road network is significantlymore developed than in the east.

The total length of railways is 1.85 thousand km. There is 1 high-speed train. highway.

Agriculture

The role of this sector in the Malaysian economy is gradually decreasing. So, in the 60s of the 20th century, agricultural production provided 37% of Malaysia's GDP and most of the population worked in this area. In 2014, the share dropped to 7.1% of total GDP, and just over 10 percent of the total population were agricultural workers.

Nevertheless, Malaysia is in second place in the world in palm oil production and in first place in its export. One of its most important buyers is Russia. The other major producer of this product is Indonesia.

Palm oil and rubber are now the most important areas of agricultural production in Malaysia. In the past, the planting of rice and coconut palms played a big role.

Industry of Malaysia

The country's industrial sector is well developed. This is due to the high proportion of science-intensive industries. At the same time, the labor force is cheaper here than in developed countries. Therefore, it is beneficial for foreign companies to place their production here. There are 12 Japanese and 20 American industrial corporations in Malaysia.

Mostly industry is concentrated in the peninsular (western) part of the country. This is due to its transport capabilities and resource potential.

Malaysia's most important industries areproduction of electronics, computers, electrical appliances. The country is a leader in the production of microcircuits and domestic air conditioners. The enterprises of various international companies, including Intel, are concentrated here. Semiconductor production set up.

Of the traditional industries, the most developed are steel, tin, wood products.

The automotive industry and light industry are well developed.

A lot of liquefied gas is produced (3rd place in the world), products of oil and gas processing, rubber, natural rubber production has been established. As well as fertilizers, household pesticides, paints, varnishes.

Trade sector

Foreign trade is of great importance in the economy of this state. Malaysia supplies world markets with palm oil, oil, liquefied gas, textiles, rubber, electronics, wood products and timber. Plastic, steel, oil products, equipment, parts, chemicals, and machines are imported into the country. Malaysia is included in the World Trade Organization, ASEAN, APEC.

The most important economic partner is the US. Countries such as China, Singapore, Japan, Thailand, South Korea, and Indonesia are also important. At present, the role of China in trade relations with Malaysia is even higher than that of the United States. In 2017, the country exported goods worth $188 billion and imported $163 billion.

Banking system

The country has a large amount of financial resources and operates27 different commercial banks, mostly foreign. They are the most important providers of financial resources. It is assumed that the capital of the country - Kuala Lumpur - will become a major financial center.

Plans for the coming years

Malaysian authorities intend to rapidly increase both the state GDP and per capita income. It is assumed that the entire territory will have access to broadband Internet. In the field of high technologies, the priorities are the development of nuclear energy and the production of solar panels. More attention will be paid to increasing the income of residents, supporting education, and social obligations. An important priority is to support the education system, which makes this country more attractive in terms of the development of high technologies, compared to neighboring Asian countries.

Conclusion

Thus, Malaysian industry and agriculture play an important role in the country's economy. However, the contributions of these sectors are not uniform and change over time. The role of agricultural production is declining, while industrial production remains at a high level. The Malaysian economy continued to grow in 2018. Forecasts for the future are also favorable. The authorities prioritize improving the quality of life of citizens, raising the level of education, and developing the banking system. However, the situation with the environment remains unfavorable, including the reduction of forest areas and environmental pollution. This may negatively affect the development of tourism.