Poverty in Malaysia - Urban and Rural Poverty

Urban and Rural Poverty

Although the apparent focus of government policy has been on addressing poverty in rural communities, commentators have argued that due to urbanisation — the proportion of Malaysians living in urban areas increasing from 27% in 1970 to 62% in 2000 — the urban communities have been unfairly neglected.

The official figure for urban poverty is given as 2%; critics have argued that this significantly underestimates urban poverty, as the poverty line is set at RM500 per month for a family of four — a monthly income which has been argued as unrealistically low for a family of four to meet its needs. A survey of Kuala Lumpur has suggested that about a quarter of the population lives in squatter settlements, which commentators like Bakri Musa have argued is a more reasonable estimate of the poverty rate. However,as of December 2007, the squatter settlement has been totally eradicated in the state of Selangor.

Prior to urbanisation, urban poverty was largely a problem confined to the non-Malay communities, as they were significantly urbanised at the time of independence. However, as Malay villagers migrated to the cities, the proportion of Malay poor has likewise increased.