The national poverty line of RM980 per household per month - is this even rationalle? How much does it cost to rent a premises for you and your family in Malaysia? Klang Valley? How much is the monthly loan obligation to pay for the house (or-low cost house) you bought? How much balance is there from that 'RM(*)' to pay for food, clothings, utilities, transportation, education...So, is RM980 a reasonable poverty line income?
Someone said to me, that one way of eliminating poverty is to simply lower the 'poverty line income' - and poverty will disappear?
Is that what is happening in Malaysia ...
According to Alston, Malaysia’s official poverty rate dropped from 49% in 1970 to just 0.4% in 2016.However, the national poverty line of RM980 per household per month would see an urban family of four surviving on RM8 per person per day.“This is a tragically low line for a country on the cusp of attaining high income status, especially since a range of rigorous independent analyses have suggested a more realistic poverty rate of 16 to 20%,” Alston said.He added that about nine percent of households survive on less than RM2,000 per month.“Actual poverty rates are much higher than official figures suggest, and the government needs to reassess how it measures poverty so that the hardship many Malaysians experience is not conjured out of existence by a statistical sleight of hand,” he said.
It is ridiculous ..
Alston said the national poverty line of 980 ringgit ($234.00) per household per month was "ridiculous", as it would mean an urban family of four would have to survive on 8 ringgit, or less than $2, per person per day. "It can't be done except under really dire circumstances," he said.Undercounting the poverty rate has led to a lack of effective government policies targeting the problem, with too many underfunded and ineffective programmes in place, Alston said.
Poorer than we think: Malaysia’s official poverty figures ‘vastly’ undercounted, says UN expert
Nation
Friday, 23 Aug 2019 12:02 PM MYT
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s claim to
having the world’s lowest national poverty rate is inaccurate, as the
official figure vastly undercounts poverty, says United Nations human
rights expert, Philip Alston.
The UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights said
Malaysia uses an unduly low poverty line that does not reflect the cost
of living and excludes vulnerable populations from its official figures.
“While Malaysia has achieved undeniably impressive growth in reducing
poverty in the last 50 years, the official claim that poverty has been
eradicated, or exists merely in small pockets in rural areas, is
incorrect and has crippled policy making,” he said at the end of his
recent 11-day visit here.
According to Alston, Malaysia’s official poverty rate dropped from 49% in 1970 to just 0.4% in 2016.
However, the national poverty line of RM980 per household per month
would see an urban family of four surviving on RM8 per person per day.
“This is a tragically low line for a country on the cusp of attaining
high income status, especially since a range of rigorous independent
analyses have suggested a more realistic poverty rate of 16 to 20%,”
Alston said.
He added that about nine percent of households survive on less than RM2,000 per month.
“Actual poverty rates are much higher than official figures suggest,
and the government needs to reassess how it measures poverty so that the
hardship many Malaysians experience is not conjured out of existence by
a statistical sleight of hand,” he said.
Alston also urged the government to urgently reconsider its approach if the country is to make any real progress on this issue.
“Despite near-universal healthcare and high school enrolment rates
for citizens, and a growing economy, large parts of the population are
being left behind and many people living above the official poverty line
are in fact in poverty,” he said.
Alston added that undercounting has also led to under-investment in
poverty reduction, and an inadequate social safety net that does not
meet the people’s needs.
This fragmented social protection system puts many people’s rights to food, housing and education at risk, he said.
Alston also highlighted that poor people in Malaysia, especially the
Orang Asli, suffered disproportionate violations of their civil and
political rights.
“Indigenous peoples suffer much higher rates of poverty, and despite
laudable commitments by the government to ensure their rights, the
customary land of indigenous communities remains under siege,
jeopardising their livelihoods, food security, and access to traditional
medicines.
“I was troubled to hear state officials speak of the need for
indigenous communities to ‘adapt’ and relocate to urban areas in order
to secure their rights,” he said.
Alston added that non-citizens including migrants, refugees and
stateless people who are barred from the public school system, face
severe barriers to accessing healthcare and are often unable to work
legally, yet are systematically excluded from official poverty
statistics.
“The government should urgently revise the way it measures poverty to
bring it into line with the country’s cost of living, and it should
include vulnerable non-citizen groups in the new measure.
“It should also stop arbitrarily withholding information that is
crucial to understanding poverty and inequality, such as household
survey microdata,” he said.
Alston noted that Malaysia has made real progress on a range of
progressive commitments, but added that the new government should not
deny the existence of the poor and marginalised.
“Instead, it should step up efforts to fulfil their rights,” he said.
Alston said he will present a comprehensive report with his
conclusions and recommendations to the Human Rights Council in Geneva in
June next year. - Star, 23/8/2019
Malaysia's poverty levels far higher than reported, U.N. expert says
(file pix) A U.N. human rights expert on Friday disputed Malaysia's
assertion that it has nearly eliminated poverty, saying that official
figures were vastly inaccurate and do not reflect realities on the
ground. Malaysia's official poverty rate dropped from 49% in 1970 to
just 0.4% in 2016. NSTP
KUALA
LUMPUR: A U.N. human rights expert on Friday disputed Malaysia's
assertion that it has nearly eliminated poverty, saying that official
figures were vastly inaccurate and do not reflect realities on the
ground.
Malaysia's official poverty rate dropped from 49% in 1970 to just 0.4% in 2016.
But
Philip Alston, U.N. special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human
rights, said the official numbers relied on outdated measures, with the
poverty line remaining at the same level for decades despite
increasingly high costs of living.
Analyses done by
independent groups suggest that Malaysia has "significant poverty" and
that its true poverty rate was about 15%, Alston said.
"The
government's official figures would make it the world champion in
eliminating poverty ... but I think it's pretty obvious that that's not
the case," Alston told a news conference at the end of an 11-day visit
to Malaysia.
The prime minister's office and finance ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Alston's assertion.
Alston
said the national poverty line of 980 ringgit ($234.00) per household
per month was "ridiculous", as it would mean an urban family of four
would have to survive on 8 ringgit, or less than $2, per person per day.
"It can't be done except under really dire circumstances," he said.
Undercounting
the poverty rate has led to a lack of effective government policies
targeting the problem, with too many underfunded and ineffective
programmes in place, Alston said.
He urged Malaysia to
reassess its methods for measuring poverty and take into account
vulnerable groups excluded from the data such as stateless families,
migrant workers, and refugees.
"Only then can Malaysia begin devising policies that can systematically address their needs," he said. -- Reuters - New Straits Times, 23/8/2019
Current and former Utusan Melayu employees protest outside the main office in Kuala Lumpur today. 
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