PUTRAJAYA – The migration rate in Malaysia decreased by 1.5% to 484,100 people for the period of 2019-2020 compared with 524,100 people in 2018, a survey on migration conducted by the Statistics Department in 2020 revealed.
Commenting on the survey findings in a statement today, Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said intra-state migration in 2020 recorded a decrease of 2.4 percentage points compared with 60.8% in 2018.
Interstate migration, on the other hand, showed an increase of 2.7 percentage points to 31.2% in 2020 from 28.5% in 2018.
“Composition of international migration from abroad to Malaysia recorded 10.4%, declined by 0.3 percentage points from 10.7% in 2018.
“For internal migration, intra-state migration was higher than interstate migration,” he said.
Uzir said intra-state migration accounted for 65.2% of total internal migration while the remaining 34.8% was interstate migration.
Three states that recorded the highest percentage of intra-state migration were Sabah with 74.4%, Johor (65.3%), and Sarawak (60.8%).
He said intra-state migration by migration flow showed that urban-to-urban migration remained the highest compared with other migration flows, which increased 6.1 percentage points to 73.0% in 2020 compared with 66.9% in 2018.
“Rural-urban migration can be indirectly attributed to development and urbanisation. Inclusive urbanisation encompassing economic and recreational activities centres drives the population to migrate to urban areas,” he said.
Uzir said the migration trend not only involved urban-to-urban movement, but also urban-to-rural movement. Two states that showed higher migration from urban to rural areas were Sabah and Kelantan.
“The current economic situation with lower job opportunities and health issues following the Covid-19 outbreak, as well as the closure of business operations and tourism activities also influenced the population to migrate to rural areas,” he said.
Uzir said the government's initiative in establishing the New Economic Development Corridor, namely the East Coast Economic Region and Sabah Development Corridor, had been a factor in attracting people to migrate into areas that receive government investment and development plans.
He said the main reasons for migration in 2020 were family (45.3%), career development (23.6%), and environment (22.3%).
“These were the main reasons for migration from 2016 until 2020. This shows that migration is an alternative for career development and improving living standards,” he said. – Bernama, August 19, 2021
