Alexa Silva

9.26.18
Professor Mohan
Sophomore International Experience

Basic Facts About Malaysia & Singapore

Malaysia and Singapore share many differences on a social, political, and economic
basis. Both countries have successful and wealthy economies although Singapore has grown to
become more prosperous than Malaysia. Trade has a huge contribution to both economies which
are free market economies. Therefore, their economies are based on supply and demand rather
than government control. These regions share many of the same leading ethnicities in both
regions and religion is important to both societies. Overall, Malaysia and Singapore are great
places and it is important to understand the development of both countries.
Although Malaysia and Singapore are currently two separate countries, they were once
united. Therefore, it is interesting to have a general profile of both countries differences and
similarities and we’ll start with Malaysia’s profile. The article “Malaysia Country Profile” that
was published by BBC News explains a timeline of Malaysia’s history and a basic description of
the entire country itself. According to this article, Malaysia has 13 states and Malay, Indian, and
Chinese groups make up the population. Currently, Sultan Muhammad V is the ruler and
Mahathir Mohamad is the prime minister of Malaysia's population of 31 million people. The
major languages that are spoken there include English, Chinese, and Malay, which is the
country’s official language. Some of the most common religions are Christianity, Buddhism, and
Hinduism and religion plays a big role in this society’s culture. Malaysia's currency is the
Ringgit and one Ringgit is equal to 0.24 cents in the United States of America’s currency. An
interesting fact about Malaysia is that it has strict laws with media censorship. The government
uses these laws to prevent harmful material from reaching the population and even goes to the
extent of censoring the News. However, politics is a popular topic in this country and the internet
can be used for political debates. Politics plays a huge role in Malaysia’s society. Their king,
Sultan Muhammad V, leads the government and all political leaders are highly respected
individuals. It also has a prime minister, who is chosen by the king, and they come from the
United Malays national Organization. The term for government in Malaysia is kerajaan. This
society has a huge federal police force and it is not uncommon for police officers to be outside of
shops holding guns to protect them. This may be part of the effort towards making Malaysia a
much safer country since it is one of the most dangerous countries in Southeast Asia. It also has a
small but existent military force (“Malaysia Country Profile”).
Gender roles in Malaysia are prominent in how families function. An article that is
simply titled “Malaysia”and was published by the website Countries and their Cultures discusses
these roles. It explains how women are expected to do the cleaning and the cooking, which is a
common gender role throughout many countries, and are seen as much less powerful than men.
Women are also employed at factories and work in assembly lines. Servants are hired for
wealthier families and do the domestic work while the men and women in these families perform
work outside of the home. Both men and women have many opportunities in different career
fields even though men are more dominant. In Malaysian culture, education is highly important.
Students tend to study at universities that our outside of Malaysia, such as in Australia.
Throughout their education, they learn how to feel a sense of belonging in diverse communities,
whether that be in Malaysia or elsewhere. Not only is the education very good, so is the medicine
and health care system. It has highly experienced doctors and it is common to have herbalists and
healers in this system. It is important to understand and practice Malaysia’s etiquette when
travelling there because it is very different than that of the USA. Shaking hands is common but
since the right hand is considered the more dominant hand, that hand should be used in greetings.
The right hand should also be used when receiving things such as gifts or giving money because
the left hand is used to cleanse the body(“Malaysia”).
A general overview of Malaysia’s economy is described in the 2018 Index Of Economic
Freedom. According to this index, Malaysia is ranked number 6 out of the countries in the Asia-
Pacific region based off of it’s economic freedom score of 74.5. It is a competitive country and is
trying to achieve a balanced budget within the next 2 years. The government has been working
towards this with tax reform and a decrease in subsidies. Many Malaysians believe the ruling of
the government is growing more corrupt and the judicial effectiveness has decreased within the
past 2 years. Government spending has increased from 78.7% to 81.3% in the past year which
just passes the line of being free. Tax burden has also slightly increased. Starting businesses in
Malaysia has become more difficult because of a new form for registration. Therefore, business
freedom has decreased. Trade is a major aspect in Malaysia’s economy and the government is
very open to foreign investments (2018 Index Of Economic Freedom).
Singapore is much smaller than Malaysia and BBC News also published an article,
“Singapore Country Profile”, about the republic. The article states that Singapore is also home to
the Maya, Indian, and Chinese groups along with Eurasians. It’s population is 5.3 million people
and the most common languages that are spoken amongst these people are English, Malay,
Mandarin, and Tamil. Singapore’s president is actually the republic's first female president and
her name is Halimah Yacob. The prime minister is Lee Hsien Loong who is the oldest son of
Singapore’s founding father. It has some highly practiced religions in common with Malaysia
such as Buddhism, Christianity, and Hinduism. Singapore’s currency is the Singapore dollar
which is equal to 0.73 cents of the US dollar. Singapore’s media is also very controlled. An
example of this is that public figures and issues online continue to be hidden from the population
(“Singapore Country Profile”.
The gender roles in Singapore differ from Malaysia’s. This is discussed in a forum titled
“Singapore” that was published by the website Countries and their Cultures. The article says that
in Singapore, both women and men are able to participate in the workforce. However, women
struggle with emerging as leaders in many different positions. Children are expected to behave
very well and be quiet on most occasions. Disobeying this can result in physical punishment.
Education is also very important here and most students strive for a greater education abroad.
Since Singapore is a very wealthy nation among Southeast Asia, those with wealth may be
treated more formally. Elders are also treated formally and respectfully. When greeting or
interacting with others, a distance is to be kept between these people and this is especially
important between men and women. Singapore also has an advanced medicine and health care
system with private and publics hospitals. Common medical beliefs are practiced here .
Singapore is also very political. The republic has a president, which is the head of state. In their
parliamentary system, the People’s Actions Party has remained very prominent. People in this
society can also face fines or penalties for littering or engaging in political activities if they are
not in political parties that are registered (“Singapore”).
Singapore has a reputation for having a good and growing economy. This region’s
economy is also described in the 2018 Index of Economic Freedom. It is ranked number 2 out of
the countries in the Asia-Pacific region. It’s economic freedom score is above the world’s
averages at 88.8. This free-market economy is known for having a non-corrupted environment
for businesses and entrepreneurship is highly promoted since it has strong and fixed property
rights in place. It’s services and ability to manufacture electronics and chemicals has made the
economy so flourishing. The property rights have increased to 98.4% and the government
integrity has reached 91.2% because the government is efficient and not corrupted. Government
spending is at 90.6% which is greater than Malaysia’s and it’s tax burden has decreased by 0.l%
in the past year so it is at 90.4%. Foreign labor is becoming more difficult but the labor laws
have allowed businesses to practice free hiring and firing. Trade is also important to Singapore’s
economy and on a basic level there are no tariffs ( 2018 Index of Economic Freedom).
In conclusion, Malaysia and Singapore are both very political countries that are filled
with diversity. Singapore’s economy is much more developed than Malaysia’s but based on the
rankings of their economic freedom scores they are doing quite well. They both have respectable
etiquette and manners. Overall, they are great places to do business in but also to travel and
experience what both countries have to offer.

Works Cited

“Malaysia Country Profile.” BBC News, BBC, 10 May 2018,

www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-15356257.
“Singapore Country Profile.” BBC News, BBC, 20 July 2018,

www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-15961759.

“Malaysia.” The Heritage Foundation,

www.heritage.org/index/country/malaysia.

“Singapore.” The Heritage Foundation,

www.heritage.org/index/country/singapore.

“Singapore.” Countries and Their Cultures,

www.everyculture.com/Sa-Th/Singapore.html.

“Malaysia.” Countries and Their Cultures,

www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/Malaysia.html.