majority of the middle class (i.e. professional, managerial and technical workers as well as owners of small and medium-sized firms), which expanded rapidly during the NEP period, seem to be the beneficiaries of economic liberalization. Nonetheless, while the rapid economic growth during the 1991-1995 period has enabled Malaysia to reduce the incidence of absolute poverty, it has occurred together with growing income disparities as benefits of such rapid growth are unevenly spread across different strata/regions in the Malaysian society. In short, ownership deregulation, waning interest in the earlier redistributive mechanisms and emphasis on scale intensive industries have reversed inequalities in Malaysia. Existing trends does suggest worsening inequalities in the future.
Hence, although Malaysia has been successful in reducing poverty, income disparities and economic imbalances during the NEP period, the problem of growing disparity in income remain and will continue to be major challenges facing Malaysia in the future. To assess the progress towards equitable development in Malaysia in the future, and to formulate policies to ensure its attainment, it is vital not only the existing income surveys need to be improved to take into account some important variables that may impinge on the progress towards achieving socially tolerable income disparities, but also to make such information accessible to researchers/scholars so that they too could contribute towards better understanding of the issues involved in this important policy issue.
