This chapter includes the following articles.
Country Profile
Malaysia consists of 13 states across a total land area of 330,000 sq km; its capital, Kuala Lumpur, is located approximately 300 km from Singapore. According to the Department of Statistics, Malaysia’s population reached 29.95m in 2013, with an average growth rate of 1.45% between 2012 and 2013. “Malaysia Truly Asia,” the country’s tourism slogan reflects who Malaysians are: an amalgamation of ethnicities, religions, cultures and languages. While the government aims for Malaysia to reach developed nation status by 2020, the key to reaching this goal lies in its handling of political and social challenges. Keeping the country’s different ethnicities and faith communities together in a workable social contract and balancing the impact of changing times with the need for continuity and respect for tradition will ensure impressive results. This chapter contains a country profile viewpoint from Prime Minister Najib Razak.
