Ethnic disparity in financial fragility in Malaysia

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent of financial fragility and its disparity across ethnic groups in Malaysia. Disparities related to income and wealth are major concerns as they breed conflict and social instability. The study also compares the level of financial fragility of Malaysians with their neighboring Asian counterparts. Design/methodology/approach – This study uses the World Values Survey to construct two financial fragility measures. Descriptive analysis is used to compare the level of financial fragility of Malaysia with other Asian countries. Ordinary least squares and generalized ordered logit regressions are applied to determine the existence of ethnic disparity in financial fragility in Malaysia. Findings – There exist ethnic differences in financial vulnerability in Malaysia where Malay and Indian are in a more financially fragile situation compared to Chinese. Other socio-economic factors and character trait also impact financial fragility. Compared to neighboring countries, the level of financial fragility in Malaysia is low. Nevertheless, over 40 percent of the Malaysians are just getting by in terms of their expenditure relative to income. They may be at risk to financial shocks without adequate savings or funds. Social implications – Ethnic disparity in financial vulnerability added to the inequality in income and wealth can pose a serious threat to Malaysia which attempts to achieve long-lasting social harmony and sustainable development. Originality/value – This is the first study that attempts to compare the level of individual financial fragility across Asian countries. It also makes use of a larger scale survey and a more representative sample to examine ethnic disparity in financial fragility in Malaysia. In addition, character trait is included in the analysis to provide a better understanding of human behavior in affecting financial outcomes

Keberkesanan Fungsi Jawatankuasa Kemajuan dan Keselamatan Kampung (JKKK) Dalam Pembangunan Luar Bandar: Satu Kajian Kes

Jawatankuasa Kemajuan dan Keselamatan Kampung atau ringkasnya JKKK adalah sebuah institusi kepimpinan di peringkat kampung yang diwujudkan ketika pemerintah negara ini berusaha gigih untuk membangunkan sektor luar bandar. Penubuhan JKKK adalah untuk mewujudkan ruang dan memberikan peluang kepada pihak rakyat melibatkan diri dalam proses pembangunan di peringkat kampung. JKKK adalah badan yang bertindak sebagai agen perubahan dan penghubung penting antara pihak kerajaan dan penduduk kampung. Kajian ini dijalankan ke atas sebuah JKKK yang dianggap berupaya di sebuah kampung tradisional dalam daerah Sepang, Selangor Darul Ehsan. Kajian kes ini bertujuan mengkaji keberkesanan fungsi JKKK dalam proses pembangunan luar bandar. Sumbangan kajian kes ini adalah untuk mengemukakan huraian objektif berhubung keupayaan dan kepentingannya dalam proses pembangunan luar bandar. Justeru, kajian ini meninjau penglibatan institusi JKKK di dalam menjalankan fungsi dan tanggungjawab yang telah digariskan. Kajian kes ini menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif dengan kaedah temubual, pemerhatian ikut serta, dan analisis dokumen sebagai instrumen untuk mengumpul dan merekodkan data. Penemuan kajian kes ini menunjukkan bahawa penduduk kampung ini telah menikmati faedah daripada kemudahan asas dan perkhidmatan pengembangan yang disediakan oleh pihak kerajaan. Kepimpinan JKKK di kampung ini turut membantu di dalam mengembangkan peluang-peluang yang disediakan oleh pihak kerajaan dengan sumber-sumber tempatan yang ada untuk faedah penduduk. Penglibatan penduduk setempat di dalam aktiviti kemasyarakatan dan ekonomi dijana oleh kepimpinan JKKK melalui proses komunikasi yang berkesan. Proses komunikasi yang berkesan yang diamalkan oleh kepimpinan JKKK kampung ini membolehkannya bertindak selaku agen perubahan di peringkat akar umbi untuk berfungsi sebagai perantara dalam proses perkongsian maklumat antara pihak kerajaan dan penduduk kampung, sebagai pemangkin, pembangunan, dan pentadbir kampung yang betjaya mengukuhkan permuafakatan di kalangan penduduk dan mewujudkan suasana kerjasama yang harmoni dengan pihak kerajaan. Penemuan kajian kes ini memberikan satu bukti bahawa JKKK yang berupaya dan berfungsi boleh memenuhi hasrat untuk membantu membawakan perubahan di kampung selaras dengan kedudukannya di dalam pasukan pembangunan. Berdasarkan kajian kes ini, disimpulkan bahawa institusi JKKK diperlukan dan masih relevan di dalam konteks pembangunan luar bandar

Household decision-making in Malaysia: the ethnic dimension

Household financial decision-making process is an important issue as it has shown to have implications on key development outcomes such as child health and education,nutrition, expenditure, and allocation of labor. Women’s ability to have control over household finances and decisions also reflects, to some extent, their level of empowerment. This study focuses on the effect of ethnicity on decision making in a household. There is relatively limited research in this area and data obtained from households in Malaysia, a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural country, provides an opportunity for an in-depth examination of the ethnic dimension. The data is obtained from a random survey of 672 Malaysian urban households of which the selection of sample was strictly determined by the Department of Statistics Malaysia to ensure randomness. The findings show that there are differences across households of different ethnicity. Chinese households are found to be more traditional and patriarchal where decisions on household financial matters are more husband-dominated. Education contributes positively in giving women more control over household finances and decision-making. The results of the study highlight the importance of ethnicity in determining the level of household bargaining and decision making power which has implications on strategies in marketing as well as national policies. Thus, any substantive and policy inferences in relations to women’s empowerment must take into account the socio-cultural aspects, rather than based on overall national level analyses. The finding that education plays a significant role in empowering women is a positive outcome. With more Malaysian women attaining higher levels of education and becoming part of the workforce, their level of empowerment and wellbeing will improve and consequently provide a positive impact on key development outcomes of the countr

Household bargaining, financial decision-making and risk tolerance

This study examines the financial investment decision-making and risk behaviors of Malaysian men and women. It uses data obtained from a survey of employed Malaysians to test two opposing models of household decision making, the income pooling hypothesis and the bargaining model. Ordinal probit regressions are estimated to determine if earning share affects decisions on financial investments, and to identify factors that affect risk tolerance of men and women. The results indicate that although both men and women practice autonomy in decisions related to financial investments, women have lower risk tolerance than men. The results on decision making are consistent with the bargaining model as reflected in the importance of relative earning share in financial decision making

Estimating cost savings through adoption of the best-practice technique: Evidence from the Malaysian manufacturing sector

By using the input-output approach, this article attempts to estimate costs of production by using the 1978 vintage and best-practiced techniques, based on the vintage hypothesis that as time progresses and price rises, adopting the best-practice technique will give more cost saving and use less amount of inputs for each unit of output produced, rather than the old techniques. This paper has identified three component production costs of vintage technology, domestic materials, imported input, and labour. It was found that costs of production for the best-practice technique are less than those of the older one (vintage), supporting the vintage hypothesis. Thus, there is a strong argument for the economy to adopt the best-practice technique because it is absolutely a considerable advantage in terms of saving in the per unit cost of production

Kesan Triali Isosianurat (TIAC) terhadap sifat tegangan filem Poly L-Laktid Asid (PLLA) yang diiradiasi gamma dan alur elektron

PLLA merupakan biodegrasi polimer yang mempunyai aplikasi yang meluas dalam pelbagai bidang industri dan perubatan. Dalam kajian ini, PLLA telah dicampurkan dengan triali isosianurat (TIAC) antara 1 hingga 6 v/v% bagi melihat perubahan sifat tegangan dan terikan filem PLLA. TIAC biasanya digunakan sebagai agen taut silang dan keplastikan untuk mengubah sifat polimer. Campuran PLLA-TIAC telah diiradiasi pada 10 kGy di bawah alur elektron (EB) dan gamma (γ). Keputusan menunjukkan kekuatan tegangan (tegasan maksimum) menurun dengan peningkatan kandungan TIAC di dalam PLLA tetapi meningkat sedikit pada 4 v/v% TIAC bagi PLLA iradiasi dan tanpa iradiasi. Manakala nilai terikan didapati meningkat pada TIAC 2 v/v% dan menurun apabila TIAC ditambah melebihi 2% v/v% terutamanya bagi PLLA yang diiradiasikan. Daripada keputusan DSC terdapat perubahan pada suhu peralihan kaca, Tg, suhu penghabluran sejuk, Tc, entalpi penghabluran sejuk, Hc dan suhu peleburan, Tm menunjukkan berlaku perubahan pergerakan rantaian PLLA dan fasa penghabluran dengan kehadiran TIAC dan sinaran mengion di dalam PLLA. Perubahan pada puncak penyerapan spektra infra merah jelmaan fourier (FTIR) menunjukkan berlaku penggantian atau kemasukkan molekul TIAC ke dalam rantian PLLA

A preliminary study of rural women entrepreneurs: Characteristics and business success factors

This paper aims to identify a demo-socio-economic profile of rural women entrepreneurs and investigate the elements of how cultural values, Islamic values, social and environment, individual beliefs, and opportunities/infrastructure have influence on the successful of rural business women.In this preliminary study, a total of 36 respondents in northern area of Kedah were interviewed.This study found most of the entrepreneurs are married and have some previous working experience.The result shows that almost 80 per cent of respondents believe in religion, work hard, and always thankful to God. They highlighted the importance of exposure to entrepreneurships since childhood, and keeping good manners as the most important factors in influencing the success of the business.In terms of Islamic practice, a total of 80.6 per cent agreed that the business must be ‘halal’ and trustworthy is a must in each transaction involved.This study further discovers that the biggest challenge is to balance the time between family and business

Impact study on physical activity scores on age equality locomotor, object control and motor skills in preschool children

This study aims to determine the effects of physical activity on age equality locomotor, age equivalents object control and gross motor skills. The Study was conducted in two phases. Phase 1 of the study was descriptive in nature, involving 120 preschool children (B = 60, G = 60) was six years old. As for Phase 2, subjects consisted of preschool children in a government school in Bandar Seremban preschool, aged six years old who were learning Physical and Aesthetic through the National Pre-School Curriculum Standard (KSPK). Size study sample consisted of 50 preschool children (B = 32, G = 18), and sampling method is convenience sampling. The instrument used in this study is a Test of Gross Motor Development-2 (TGMD-2) developed by Ulrich (2000). Data obtained through motor ability tests cover six locomotor tests and six object control tests. MANOVA analysis and MANCOVA were used to determine the effects of an intervention program to control the pre-test. Findings: Based on the Phase 1 the study found that the level of gross motor development of preschool children between three preschools are not equivalent to the age of locomotor and object control. A government preschool selected for Phase 2 because the findings of means for gross motor skills are low compared with the mean score for the gross motor skills for KEMAS and private group students. The findings of the analysis of Phase 2 of the pre-test and control treatment groups reported a significant difference in the mean gross motor skills [F (3,46) = 4.99; p 0.05, eta squared = .041]. The tests showed traces of physical activity significantly to the gross motor skills of preschool children. There are significant differences in the mean gross motor development [F (3,46) = 11,296; p <0.05, eta squared = .424] between the control and treatment groups. Univariate F test analysis showed a significant difference in post-test scores for the dependent variable AEL [F (1,48) = 21,324; p <0.05, eta squared = .308], AEM [(1,48) = 24.71; p <0.05, eta squared = .340], and GMDQ [F (1,48) = 20,215; p <0.05, eta squared = .296], and for the treatment and control groups. Discussion: The overall level of motor development of preschool children are at a low level. The results support the intervention program that uses the module physical activity can help improve gross motor skills of children treated group

PAPR reduction in CP-OFDM (5G) using hybrid technique

The Cyclic Prefix Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (CP-OFDM) is a 5G multicarrier waveform that offers great data speeds and improvements in spectrum utilisation. The primary CP-OFDM’s weakness is its excessive peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR), which is a characteristic of all multicarrier modulation techniques. We study the application of a hybrid technique approach how to lower the peak to average power ratio (PAPR) in a CP-OFDM system. We also evaluated the outcomes of peak to average power ratio (PAPR) decrease in CP-OFDM, utilising a hybrid technique with Group Codeword Shift (GCS), Median Codeword Shift, Selective Codeword Shift (SCS), and Conventional CP-OFDM. When compared to the non-hybrid technique, the simulation results indicate that the hybrid approach is superior in reducing the peak PAPR by more than 65 percent