KUALA LUMPUR: The unemployment rate was recorded at 3.2 per cent or 510,000 people as of last Dec 31, Malaysian chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said.
The statistics in the fourth quarter of 2019 were drawn from a total of 19 million people in the 15 to 64 years age group who were in the labour market.
“Out of the 510,000, the unemployed comprised those still studying, not looking for jobs, housewives and those who have retired.
“We found that most of them were unemployed for less than six months, possibly looking for a job, haven’t found a suitable job or waiting for response from prospective employers.
“Only 10 to 20 per cent of the unemployment rate spanned over six months and the rate was not too high,” he told reporters after opening the ‘14 volumes of the 728 papers’ proceeding at the 62nd ISI World Statistics Congress (WSC) 2019, here, today.
The first quarter (Q1) unemployment statistics of 2020 would be released in May, he said.
Mohd Uzir also stated that the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) was targeting 30 per cent of the Malaysian Population and Housing Census 2020 process through the online E-Census 2020 system.
It is aimed at urban residents whose current development factors are taken into account to gather data more efficiently.
“As the census begins on July 7, we will be launching the E-Census system two weeks in advance for them to provide more accurate household information at any time.
“However, the house-to-house census process will be carried out in certain areas, especially in rural areas using tablets and smartphone applications,” he said.
The DOSM today launched all 14 volumes of the 728 papers proceeding presented at the 62nd ISI WSC 2019 after having received the consent for publication from its authors.
Mohd Uzir said these papers presented during the congress from Aug 18 to 23, 2019 were in the form of Invited Paper Sessions (IPS), Special Topic Sessions (STS) and Contributed Paper Sessions (CPS).
“Encompassing various topics and disciplines from across the world, the proceeding was a way to engage with leading-edge research prior to official journal publication, as well as to initiate new ideas, concepts and techniques in areas which are not fully developed,” he said.
The event also saw the debut of song titled ‘Statistik... Segalanya Pasti’, the Bahasa Malaysia version of the ISI WSC 219 theme song entitled ‘Statistics Bloom in Harmony’ performed by local singer, Adibah Noor. – BERNAMA