4 years: 61.6% (male 6,995,451; female 6,969,435) 65 years and over:
4.3% (male 424,776; female 544,764) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.91% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 24.22 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 5.16 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: does not reflect
net flow of an unknown number of illegal immigrants from other countries
in the region (2002 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06
male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78
male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 19.66 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: 74.21 years (2002 est.) male: Total fertility
rate: 3.18 children born/woman (2002 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.42% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 49,000 (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 1,900 (1999 est.)

Nationality: noun: Malaysian(s) adjective: Malaysian

Ethnic groups: Malay and other indigenous 58%, Chinese 24%, Indian 8%,
others 10% (2000)

Religions: Muslim, Buddhist, Daoist, Hindu, Christian, Sikh; note -
in addition, Shamanism is practiced in East Malaysia

Languages: Bahasa Melayu (official), English, Chinese dialects
(Cantonese, Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainan, Foochow), Tamil, Telugu,
Malayalam, Panjabi, Thai; note - in addition, in East Malaysia several
indigenous languages are spoken, the largest of which are Iban and Kadazan

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total
population: 83.5% male: 89.1% female: 78.1% (1995 est.)

Government Malaysia

Country name: Malaysia former: Government type: constitutional monarchy
note: Malaya (what is now Peninsular Malaysia) formed 31 August 1957;
Federation of Malaysia (Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore) formed
9 July 1963 (Singapore left the federation on 9 August 1965); nominally
headed by the paramount ruler and a bicameral Parliament consisting of a
nonelected upper house and an elected lower house; Peninsular Malaysian
states - hereditary rulers in all but Melaka, Penang, Sabah, and Sarawak,
where governors are appointed by the Malaysian Government; powers of state
governments are limited by the federal constitution; under terms of the
federation, Sabah and Sarawak retain certain constitutional prerogatives
(e.g., the right to maintain their own