Malaysia boasts one of south-east Asia's most
vibrant economies, the fruit of decades of industrial growth and
political stability.
Its multi-ethnic, multi-religious society encompasses a
majority Muslim population in most of its states and an
economically-powerful Chinese community. Consisting of two regions
separated by some 640 miles of the South China Sea, Malaysia is a
federation of 13 states and three federal territories.
It is one of the region's key tourist destinations, offering
excellent beaches and brilliant scenery. Dense rainforests in the
eastern states of Sarawak and Sabah, on the island of Borneo, are a
refuge for wildlife and tribal traditions.
Landmark Petronas Towers: Malaysia made the transformation from a farm-based economy
Country profiles compiled by BBC Monitoring
Ethnic Malays comprise some 60%
of the population. Chinese constitute around 26%; Indians and indigenous
peoples make up the rest. The communities coexist in relative harmony,
although there is little racial interaction - and the overturning of a
ban on the use of the word "Allah" by non-Muslims in December 2009
highlighted the religious divide in the country.
Although since 1971 Malays have benefited from positive
discrimination in business, education and the civil service, ethnic
Chinese continue to hold economic power and are the wealthiest
community. The Malays remain the dominant group in politics while the
Indians are among the poorest.
The country is among the world's biggest producers of
computer disk drives, palm oil, rubber and timber. It has a
state-controlled car maker, Proton, and tourism has considerable room
for expansion.
The indigenous Penan people of Sarawak have been affected by large-scale logging
Malaysia's economic prospects have been dented by the global
economic downturn, which has hit export markets hard. In March 2009 the
government unveiled a $16bn economic stimulus plan as it sought to stave
off a deep recession.
Concerns have been raised that the drive towards further
industrialisation could pose a serious threat to the environment. The
Borneo rainforest is under pressure from palm oil plantations, and
environmental campaigners have expressed misgivings over wholesale
logging in the state of Sarawak.
Environmental activists have also objected to plans for a rare earths processing plant in the state of Pahang.
The country also faces the challenge of sustaining stability in the face of religious differences and the ethnic wealth gap.
Malaysia's human rights record has come in for international
criticism. Internal security laws allow suspects to be detained without
charge or trial.
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