By Yvonne T
KUCHING, Dec 17: Sarawak’s income gap is gradually narrowing, but more needs to be done to reduce disparities across the State, said Bank Muamalat Malaysia Berhad chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid.
Speaking at the 2026 Sarawak Budget Conference during his presentation, ‘Budget 2026: Deep Dive into Malaysia & Sarawak’s Fiscal Direction’, Mohd Afzanizam noted that Sarawak’s GINI Coefficient, which measures income inequality, has been on a downward trend, with latest numbers standing at 0.382 points as at 2022.
“In terms of trajectory, there’s much that needs to be done. If you look at Scandinavian countries, their GINI coefficient is at around 0.2 to 0.3. That should perhaps be the right trajectory in terms of GINI coefficient that we need to achieve,” he said.
However, he pointed out that Sarawak is on the right track in terms of its strategic investments and revenue growth driven by greater autonomy.
He said Sarawak’s 2026 Budget continues to focus on the State’s future, prioritising education and key economic sectors such as green energy, modern agriculture, tourism, and other growth industries.
“This is very critical because at the end of the day, what we want for the State, or even the country, is to grow at a fast pace, but grow with equality,” he added.
According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia, from 2014 to 2024, Sarawak’s GINI Coeffient index has seen a gradual decline from 0.44 points recorded in 2012 to 0.361 points in 2024, down from 0.382 points in 2022, indicating a narrowing income gap.
Data from its latest ‘Sarawak Yearbook 2024’ also showed Sarawak’s average monthly household income is at RM6,947 as at 2024, rising from RM6,457 in 2022, and the average monthly household income for urban area rose 3.4 per cent from RM7,744 in 2022 to RM8,282 in 2024, while rural area rose 3.9 per cent from RM4,579 in 2022 to RM4,954 in 2024.
On average, incidence of absolute poverty in Sarawak saw slight average decline to 8.4 in 2024 compared with 10.8 in 2022 while incidence of relative poverty declined slightly to 14.6 in 2024 from 16.2.
Sarawak also continues to retain its status as a high-income State, with the World Bank reporting a Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of RM73,100, surpassing the high-income threshold of RM63,800 annually. – DayakDaily
