Chronicling Themes in the Economic and Social History of Malaysia

Author: Sultan Nazrin Shah
Publisher: World Scientific
Year Published: 2026
ISBN: 9789819822294
Pages: 488 pages
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Sultan Nazrin Shah brings together highly distinguished researchers to explore issues in the economic, administrative, and social history of modern Malaysia.

The challenge of the plural society — with large 'Malay', 'Chinese', and 'Indian' blocs — is investigated from many angles, particularly the way governments have handled economic inequalities. Both the dangers and the achievements of the New Economic Policy (emerging in 1969–1971) are examined, as are developments in education policy — which today requires invigoration of science and mathematics training if Malaysia is to escape the 'middle-income trap'.

Some chapters throw new light on such turning-point episodes as the Japanese occupation (1941–1945) and the communist Emergency (1948–1960). As well as focusing on major cities, other essays investigate the role of small towns in Malaysia's urbanization. We hear the voices of 'poor gardeners, farmers, and hawkers' as well as elite leaders in Malaysia's transition to modernity. Not all change was for the better. In empowering women, for instance, we read that Westernized governmental approaches offer less than the pre-modern Malay heritage.

Although the chapters move in many directions, the creative role of government in modern Malaysia — going back to the colonial period — is a dominant narrative. The country's engagement in the global economy — through tin and rubber — was underpinned by establishing law and order, with secure property rights, and the building of a communications and bureaucratic framework. The post-independence government Malayanized British assets, boosted GDP per head of population, addressed the sharp economic disadvantages of the Malay/Bumiputra community, and reoriented the national economy towards 'export-oriented industrialization'. Today, Malaysia is heavily urbanized, with world-leading electrical and electronics hubs in Penang and the Klang Valley.