SHAH ALAM - Selangorians have the highest life expectancy at birth in Malaysia, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
In its publication "Abridged Life Tables, Malaysia 2021-2023", Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the five states with the highest life expectancy for both males and females for the period 2021-2023 are Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Labuan, and Sarawak.
"The highest life expectancy at birth for males and females by administrative districts for 2023 was recorded in Petaling, Selangor (80.5 years), while Samarahan, Sarawak recorded the highest life expectancy in 2022 (79.6 years) and 2021 (79.8 years).
"Terengganu recorded the lowest life expectancy for both males and females for the period 2021-2023.
"The lowest life expectancy at birth for 2023 was recorded in Kecil Lojing, Kelantan (62.8 years), while the lowest for 2022 was recorded in Kuala Penyu, Sabah (63.2 years)," Mohd Uzir Mahidin said in a statement today.
Overall, 31 of 156 districts surpassed life expectancy at the national level.
According to Mohd Uzir, the statistics also show that for the period of 2013 to 2019, life expectancy at birth increased by 0.3 years, with males increasing by 0.2 years and females by 0.5 years.
However, from 2020 to 2022, life expectancy at birth decreased by 0.9 years, with males decreasing by 1.0 year and females decreasing by 0.8 years.
The increase in life expectancy in 2023 is due to the improved number of deaths compared to 2021 and 2022, which was attributed to the increase in the number of excess deaths during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In terms of ethnicity, Mohd Uzir said the Chinese continue to register the highest life expectancy at birth in 2023, at 77.0 years.
"In contrast, the lowest life expectancy at birth is recorded by Indians, at 71.4 years for the same year," he added.