MALAYSIA’S GENDER GAP INDEX RISE TO 0.708, DRIVEN BY STRONG GAINS IN EDUCATION AND HEALTH - DOSM

PUTRAJAYA, Nov 25 (Bernama) -- Malaysia’s Gender Gap Index (MGGI) rose to 0.708 in 2024, a 0.3-percentage point increase from 0.705 in 2023, supported by strong progress in educational attainment and health and survival, alongside modest gains in economic participation and opportunity.

Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the economic participation sub-index strengthened in 2024, with women’s labour force participation rising to 56.5 per cent (2023: 56.2 per cent). 

“Women’s mean monthly salaries and wages also increased to RM3,499, up from RM3,311 in the previous year,” he said in a statement today.

Mohd Uzir said education continued to be the strongest performing dimension for women, with enrolment rates for females consistently outpacing males at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. 

In 2024, female gross enrolment rates stood at 100.3 per cent (primary), 95.7 per cent (secondary)and 56.4 per cent (tertiary), significantly higher than for males.

The health and survival sub-index also improved, recording a score of 0.962 while female life expectancy at birth rose to 77.6 years in 2024, compared with 65.6 years in 1970. The ratio of female-to-male births increased to 0.940 in 2024, reflecting 200,999 female births compared with 213,919 male births.

Mohd Uzir said despite these gains, political empowerment remains Malaysia’s most challenging dimension, with the score stagnant at 0.096 in 2024. 

Women held only 16.1 per cent of ministerial posts, while women’s representation in the Dewan Rakyat stood at 13.5 per cent, highlighting persistent disparities in political leadership.

At the state level, Putrajaya (0.774) achieved the highest MGGI score in 2024, followed closely by Kuala Lumpur (0.773) and Labuan (0.750). 

Six other states surpassed the national score of 0.708: Kelantan (0.729), Selangor (0.725), Negeri Sembilan (0.724), Perlis and Perak (0.715), and Kedah (0.713).

For the first time, DOSM released two separate publications on women’s development: the Malaysia Gender Gap Index (MGGI) 2025 report, which measures gender gaps across four sub-indices, and the Statistics on Women Empowerment, Malaysia 2025 report, which highlights women’s achievements and socio-economic status across selected domains.

The Statistics on Women Empowerment report shows that women make up 47.5 per cent, or 16.2 million, of Malaysia’s total population of 34.1 million in 2024. 

That year, 200,999 baby girls were born out of 414,918 live births, while Malaysia’s total fertility rate remained low at 1.6 children per woman.

Meanwhile, DOSM reaffirmed Malaysia’s commitment to advancing gender equality and strengthening women’s rights, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Thirteenth Malaysia Plan, which targets raising the female labour force participation rate to 60 per cent. 

The department said reliable gender-disaggregated data remains crucial to guiding effective, inclusive policymaking.

The full reports can be downloaded for free from the DOSM portal (www.dosm.gov.my).

-- BERNAMA