During my visit to #Malaysia last year, I criticized the excessively low national poverty line, a statistical sleight of hand that erased poverty in the country.
The government has now doubled the absolute poverty line, raising the poverty rate from 0.4% to 5.6%. My response:
The government has now doubled the absolute poverty line, raising the poverty rate from 0.4% to 5.6%. My response:
Malaysia's government has taken a courageous step towards bringing its poverty line closer to reality. The line announced today is more than double the previous one and results in an official poverty rate 14 times higher than previously acknowledged.
But because the new poverty rate of 5.6% is just one-third of that estimated by almost all independent analyses, I hope that the government will include an even more realistic benchmark in the 12th Malaysia Plan.
Adjusting the line is a vital first step. The challenge now is to systematically address poverty by instituting a comprehensive social protection scheme and to provide greater data transparency, in line with almost all democratic countries.
The government needs to take seriously the plight of millions of non-citizens disproportionately affected by poverty and excluded from official figures, indigenous people facing severe discrimination and rights violations, and women who are often excluded from the workforce.
My final report on Malaysia is available here: undocs.org/A/HRC/44/40/Ad…
The government's statement raising the poverty line is available here: dosm.gov.my/v1/index.php?r…
The government's statement raising the poverty line is available here: dosm.gov.my/v1/index.php?r…
