Malaysia consists of a series of islands and the largest of them all is shared by Malaysia along with two neighboring countries. Their exports mainly compose of oil and electronic equipments. The law strictly prohibits use or possession of drugs and there is penalty of death for someone who is found guilty. The official religion is Islam but there are minorities too which include Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism. Many international brands outsource their manufacturing unit to Malaysia due to their technical expertise. Interestingly the world’s largest cave room is in Malaysia. The country might be small but it has immense potential. (Nadaraj, 2014)
Political Factors
Just as ethnically divided the country is, the country’s politics follow the same suite. UMNO is the most popular political party in Malaysia and although in 2013 another party won the popular vote, they failed to capture seats from UMNO. The other party is Pakatan and it is multiethnic and it is formed on the grounds that minorities should be given equal opportunity to represent themselves. Since the elections the political drift has divided the country in two parts. Prime Minister Najib Razzak is trying to save his neck and political career by trying to cope up with the scandal that has recently come to surface, it involves government investment fund and Prime Minster heads the financial dept of it. So far Prime Minister has asked two government officials to step down, both of whom decided to go against him. Full force investigation has been launched to investigate the matters. Fortunately for UMNO, opposition is a mess at the moment, with their leader in jail but there is high chance that UMNO might not be able to win next elections as they already lost popular votes. (Kassim, 2015)
Economic Factors
It is the third richest country in its region. GDP per person is around $11000 in 2014, however like all the other economies that were heavily relying on China for their exports they have also faced difficulties when Chinese economy slowed down. Malaysian currency has devalued against dollar to this extent for the first time in history. Global oil price fluctuations have hurt their economy since it was their major export, also the Malaysian labor force is deemed expensive as compared to their counterparts, and therefore many companies do not think manufacturing in Malaysia is as feasible as they used to think before. Worst of all situations is the political between current and former Prime Minister which has made investors rethink about their decisions.
Social Factors
Malaysia has experienced years of economic growth and development with dynamic leadership, where government with its carefully targeted policies encouraged urbanization. Social issues such as poverty, unemployment and exploitation of workers by large corporations do not exist in Malaysia; however racial discrimination and conflicts are getting worse with the passage of time. Majority of population is of Muslims but Hindus, Buddhists and Christians are not in negligent numbers which gives rise to these conflicts esp. among youth. They have started supporting extremists of their religions and as we all know “Extremism breeds extremism”.
Technological Factors
Major firms in the world have outsourced their manufacturing in Malaysia because of its well established infrastructure and well equipped workforce who are productive and skilled. The railroads, recreational parks, apartments and shopping malls are all equipped with optical fibers to provide internet connectivity to all people.
Environmental Factors
Environment of Malaysia is deeply impacted by deforestation and pollution. Malaysia has been blessed by diverse range of flora and fauna. The urbanization, placing of dams, agriculture etc are the huge motives behind deforestation. According to the facts and figures from FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) shows that the deforestation rate in Malaysia has escalated by 86% from the years between 1990-2000 and 2000-2005.
Malaysia is a huge exporter of tropical wood and palm oil. As a result, logging is still carried out in Malaysia although on paper they have the best rainforest protection policies. The island of Borneo in Malaysia has suffered huge deforestation by loggers since Malaysian primary forests exist in its states. The people of the region protested against the logging but the government of Malaysia was able to hush them down and the logging rate has increased since then.
The headland of Malaysia experienced mining at the cost of deforestation and pollution. This has left an ugly mark on the ecological system of that region opening new ways to colonization.
Air pollution has gained deep roots in the country as the toxic gases from vehicles and industries are being emitted into the atmosphere. Malaysia is ranked 42nd in the world on the basis of ownership of most transports per capita. 40% of the rivers in Malaysia are densely polluted as they are situated near the urban cities. These cities produce 1.5 million tons of solid waste per year. After considering the land in usage, Malaysia has been ranked 4th in the world on the terms of emitting most amount of greenhouse gases per capita.
periodic fires in Malaysia, especially in Malaysian Borneo, have many adverse effects on the environment and people. However the fire incident in 2005 called the Malaysian haze was caused by the burning activities in Indonesia.
Law/Legal Factors
Malaysian law has been influenced by the Great Britain. This law was established in the early colonies of Malay Peninsula. Malaysia gained its independence from the British in 1957. The legal history of Malaysia starts with the acquirement of Penang in 1786 and the charter of justice was introduced in 1807, 1826 and 1855.Malaysian laws are also based on Australian and Indian laws. The Malaysian criminal code was made after Indian criminal code and Malaysian land law is based on Australian Torrens system. The federal jurisdiction made by the parliament of Malaysia is practiced throughout the country. The Islamic sharia law is also implemented in certain regions of Malaysia.
Bibliography
Kassim, Y. R. (2015, July 31). Understanding the Mega-Crisis in Malaysian Politics. Retrieved December 19, 2015, from The Diplomat: http://thediplomat.com/2015/07/understanding-the-mega-crisis-in-malaysian-politics/
Nadaraj, V. (2014, April 15). Nine Malaysia Facts You Probably Didn’t Know. Retrieved December 19, 2015, from The Establishment Post: http://www.establishmentpost.com/10-quirky-facts-probably-didnt-know-malaysia/
Butler, Rhett A. “Diversities of Image – Rainforest Biodiversity.” Mongabay.com / A Place Out of Time: Tropical Rainforests and the Perils They Face. 9 January 2006. http://rainforests.mongabay.com/0305.htm.