|
Malaysia
|
|
|
Malaysia is located at far east Asia. It was created in 1963 through the merging of Malaya (independent in 1957) and the former British Singapore, both of which formed West Malaysia, and Sabah and Sarawak in north Borneo, which composed East Malaysia. Its area is about 1/4 of Iran and Its weather is quite tropical. Today, population of Malaysia is about 22 million of which %51 are Malayan, % 37 Chinese , 12 % Indian and the rest are from other countries. There are about 1.5 million foreign workforce there , most of them Indonesian serving in low level jobs. There are about 3000 Iranians living in Malaysia most of them in Kuala Lumpur. There occupations range from bakery to carpet seller to university teachers. Malayan, Chinese and Indian have retained their own distinct cultures here. It can be best seen by examining the woman suits. Malayan women wear long and colorful dress with a scarf. Chinese women wear western suite with simple colors notably mini skirt, and Indians wear sari. Besides, they all have their own traditional restaurants and speak to each other with their own language. ( Of course the official language is Malayan which is used in schools and government offices.) Indeed 3 different cultures live peacefully next to each other ! Malayan are Moslem and its very notable that unlike Iran, Islam is not in danger there! (I remember a heavy traffic in Friday noon in Kula Lumpur after the end of the Friday Prayers). Malaysia exports electronic equipment, petroleum and liquefied natural gas, chemicals, palm oil, wood and wood products, rubber and textiles which sum up to around $80 billion a year. Its imports are about $60 billion a year. This large export surplus has enabled the country to build up substantial financial reserves ($31 billion at yearend 1999), and has led to stable macroeconomic environment, in which both inflation and unemployment stand at 3% and GDP to grow at 6%. Malaysians are very optimistic about their future. In their 2nd Outline Perspective Plan, It is aimed that Malaysia to become a fully developed country by the year 2020, not economically but also in all other aspects. To reach this aim, there is a 2nd Industrial Master Plan which covers a period from 1996 to 2005. Its based on 2 principal strategies:
There is also a National IT Agenda which is much more than a policy document: its ultimate aim is nothing less than the complete transformation of the Malaysian society and economy into one that is knowledge-based.
|
|
|
