An independent federal state of the British Commonwealth, the Federation of Greater Malaysia was constituted on 16 September 1963, uniting the 11 states of the Federation of Malaysia (independent since 31 August 1957) with Sabah and Sarawak (formerly territories of British Borneo) and Singapore. The latter left the Federation on 9 August 1965. The UMNO (United Malays National Organization) has dominated the country’s politics until the 2018 elections, won by an opposition coalition led by Mahathir bin Mohamad, former Prime Minister for 22 years until 2003.
Each one of the 13 states of the Federation has its own State Legislative Assembly and executive bodies. The hereditary sovereigns and elective heads of state of the member states choose the Supreme Chief of the Federation (the Yang di-Pertuan Agong) who remains in office for five years.
The Prime Minister reports to the Federal Parliament, made up of the House of Representatives (222 members elected by universal suffrage for five years; Sarawak has 27 seats, Sabah has 20 seats) and the Senate (70 members, with 44 appointed by the head of the Federation and 26 by the individual State Legislative Assemblies, who remain in office for three years). The right to vote is acquired at the age of 21.

Defence and justice.
The legal system is based on British Common Law.

Population by age and gender (% - 2020)
	75+ 60-74 45-59 30-44 15-29 0-14
MALE	AGE	FEMALE

80% of the population is concentrated in Peninsular Malaysia. The main ethnic groups are Malay Muslims, Chinese and Indians. There are many refugees, especially Burmese.

Economic situation.
In 2021, the recovery from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic began, which damaged the country’s export-based economy, prompting the government to introduce measures to stimulate the economy and support the least affluent families; it also hopes to encourage the diversification of production activities and to draw in foreign investments, although the special privileges enjoyed by people of Malay origin represents something of a stumbling block. The burdensome system of subsidies has been revived in a bid to reduce the public deficit, and in 2015 a 6% value-added tax was introduced.

Primary sector

The main food crop is rice, which is cultivated especially in the areas of Kota Baharu and Kuala Terengganu. The most relevant industrial crops are oil palms (in particular in Sabah), coconut palms and tropical fruits (especially pineapples and bananas), which are also exported. Malaysia is one of the world’s largest rubber producers, with 85% of the plantations are located in Peninsular Malaysia.
Fishing is also relevant (scombrids, carangids, tuna, shrimp, cuttlefish).

Secondary sector
Minerals.
Considerable quantities of crude oil are extracted from the reserves off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia (at Bekok, Tapis, Pulai and Dulang), from reserves in Sabah (at Barton, Erb, Samarang, Lotan and Ketam) and from offshore wells in Sarawak (at West Lutong, Baram, Siwa, Temana and Bayan). Reserves of natural gas are being exploited at Kinarut (in Sabah) and at West Lutong, Baram, Siwa, Temana and Bayan (in Sarawak). A state-owned company, Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas), is responsible for extracting and producing hydrocarbons. Most of Malaysia’s tin is mined at deposits near Ipoh (in Perak) and at Kuala Lumpur; smaller deposits are found at Mersing (in Johor) and at Kuantan (in Pahang). Reasonable quantities of iron-ore are mined at Dungun (in Terengganu) and Ulu Rompin (in Pahang), bauxite at Telok Ramunia (in Johor), silver at Mamut (in Sabah), gold in Peninsular Malaysia (Kelantan, Pahang and Terengganu) and in Sarawak, coal, antimony, ilmenite and feldspar.
Industry.
There are oil refineries at Kerteh, Melaka, Port Dickson and Lutong (in Sarawak). There is a large petrochemical facility and a gas liquefaction plant at Bintulu (in Sarawak). Foundries located at Pinang, Butterworth and Kelang supply especially tin and by-products such as columbite and ilmenite. There are cement factories at Rawang, Kanthan and Pasir Gudang. The engineering industry is based in Pinang (shipyards), at Kuala Lumpur (railway rolling stock production plants), at Tampoi, Batu Tiga and Kuala Lumpur (vehicle assembly plants). The main industrial sector is electronics, which drives strong exports.
The processing of local products, such as palm oil, sugar, copra (in Pinang), pineapples (at Johor Baharu) and timber (in Sarawak) is still quite important for the economy.

Tertiary sector
Foreign trade.
Malaysia’s main imports are electronic products, machinery, oil products and vehicles.

Main exports
(M US$ - 2017)
electronic integrated circuits and microassemblies 32 766, electrical and electronic equipment 31 566, crude oil and 
petroleum products 22 082, machinery 12 687, computers 
and accessories 11 060, natural gas 10 015, palm oil 9 660, 
chemicals 8 891, technical and electro-medical appliances 7 827, plastics 7 439, natural rubber and rubber articles 7 189

Finance and banking.
The central bank is the Bank Negara Malaysia. The financial system is well developed. There is a stock exchange in Kuala Lumpur.

Tourism. Tourism constitutes an important source of revenues in foreign currency.

Transport.
In Peninsular Malaysia, the road and rail networks are quite highly developed. In Sarawak (where there is no railway) and Sabah the road network is limited. There is a modern, far-reaching air service based on the hub at Sepang (Kuala Lumpur International Airport).

Education.
In state schools, education is free and compulsory between the ages of 6 and 16.