SARAWAK presents Malaysia with a revealing economic question. How can a state rank among the country's strongest producers of economic value while its typical household receives less income than the national median?
The Statistics Department revised 2024 figures bring the question into focus. Sarawak logged gross domestic product (GDP) per capita of RM73,253, above the national figure of RM56,772.
Yet its median gross monthly household income was RM5,504, compared with Malaysia's RM7,017. Its mean household income, RM6,947, was also below the national average of RM9,155.
Using 2024 provides a common reference year for production and household income. The figures describe different aspects of prosperity.
