A social activist has called for the current
absolute poverty measurement used by the government to be revamped as it
doesn't take into account the rising cost of living.
PETALING
JAYA: Would you be able to pay for food, clothing, accommodation,
furniture, medical bills, transport, education and recreation by earning
just RM763 a month?
This was the question posed by Saya Anak Bangsa Malaysia (SABM)
representative A Jayanath, 63, during a recent interview with FMT in
Petaling Jaya.
“The eight things listed are based on the government’s minimum
requirement on what a household should be able to manage based on the
poverty line income (PLI) of RM763 for a middle-income nation,” said
Jayanath.
He said the calculation was based on a concept called the “absolute poverty measurement”.
But the government had set different “measurements” for different
regions. While RM763 is the benchmark for poverty line in Peninsular
Malaysia, it is RM912 in Sarawak and RM1,048 in Sabah.
“Based on the absolute poverty line measurement, Malaysia has done a
great job in reducing poverty. Currently, we only have 3.8% of Malaysian
households that are considered poor,” said Jayanath.
However, Jayanath said that the weakness in the absolute poverty line
measurement system was that it uses the bare minimum World Bank
standard of US$2 per capita per day, and it does not address several
factors, such as the differences in cost of living in urban and rural
areas, and the annual increase in the consumer price index (CPI).
He added that this is the reason why the government should consider
using a “relative” poverty measurement system that would include, among
others, these factors in calculating the poverty rate in the country.
Based on the system, Jayanath said that 50% of the monthly household
median income should be used as the benchmark to measure the poverty
rate in the country.
“Based on the 2009 survey by the Department of Statistics, the
national household median income stands at RM2,841 a month. Therefore,
our poverty line benchmark should be set at around RM1,500 per
household,” he said.
Jayanath said that many developed countries, such as the United
States, Australia and New Zealand use this system to measure their
poverty level.
“And that is why high-income nations such as Japan and South Korea say that their poverty level is about 15%,” he said.
Social Inclusion Commission
However, Jayanath pointed out that if RM1,500 per household was used
as a benchmark for poverty, it will show that about 21.6% of total
households in Malaysia are currently below that threshold.
“That roughly translates into nearly six million of our population.
But tell me honestly, what can you do with RM1,500 if you have a family
of four? Not much I think,” said Jayanath.
And this is why, he added, that the government should consider the
proposed Social Inclusion Bill in order to address this matter.
On Tuesday, SABM mooted the bill which would compel the government to establish a Social Inclusion Commission (SIC).
The commission would be tasked with formulating and monitoring
poverty reduction programmes and eliminating institutionalised
discrimination in the country.
Jayanath said that it was also equally important for the government
to customise poverty eradication programmes based on the rural-urban
divide and by regions.
“Earning RM1,500 in Gua Musang, Kelantan, is different from earning
the same amount in Taman Medan, Petaling Jaya,” said Jayanath.
He also said that it was important for policy-makers to get the
participation of the MPs, state assemblymen and NGOs in order to
understand poverty in a given constituency or locality.
“A community leader from Klang will have better understanding of the
poverty in his area as opposed to a policy-maker based in Putrajaya ,”
said Jayanath.
Indigenous people, he added, needed customised programmes that cater for traditional norms and cultural practices.
“Many of them prefer to live in their natural ecosystem. So you
cannot go around building concrete structures for them to live in. You
must consult and understand their real needs first,” he said.
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