SHAH ALAM, Aug 13 — The state government will seek to narrow income disparities between districts by measuring household income growth at the district level, rather than relying solely on the Selangor-wide median, said Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.
This approach would enable the state government to better assess whether economic growth under the Selangor Second Plan (RS-2) had reached people across different districts and ensure improvements in household income were more evenly distributed.
“One of the missions in the Second Selangor Plan is to reduce the gap between these districts by looking at the figures, not just the overall median household income but by examining median income according to each district and its growth,” he said during his winding-up speech on RS-2 at the Selangor State Legislative Assembly sitting today.
Amirudin cited Petaling as an example, where the median household income was nearly RM12,000 when compared to about RM6,000 in Sabak Bernam.
The disparity remained even though Sabak Bernam recorded one of the highest increases in household income, with median income rising by about RM1,500.
He added that Selangor’s Gini coefficient — a measure of income inequality — had also improved, falling from 0.393 in 2019 to 0.332 in 2024.
“This is why, in the Second Selangor Plan, one of its missions was to reduce the gap between these districts.
“When the Gini coefficient declines, it means the income gap between those receiving higher salaries and those receiving moderate salaries has narrowed,” Amirudin said.
Meanwhile, the state's median household income rose from RM8,210 before the First Selangor Plan (RS-1) to RM10,726 in 2024, surpassing the previous plan's target of about RM9,000.
Income gains were also recorded in less urbanised districts, including Hulu Selangor and Sabak Bernam.
In Hulu Selangor, the median household income rose from RM5,855 in 2019 to RM8,485 in 2024, an increase of RM2,630. In Sabak Bernam, median household income increased from RM4,453 to RM6,940 over the same period, representing a 35.4 per cent increase.
He noted that the focus on reducing regional disparities stemmed from the state government's efforts to rebalance economic growth geographically.
The Menteri Besar cited Hulu Selangor's growing automotive sector, which had exceeded expectations under RS-1, as an example of how emerging economic strengths could shape development under RS-2.
“We did not expect Hulu Selangor to experience such significant growth, especially in the automotive sector.
“With the entry of Chery and another international company, as well as several supporting networks, I see Serendah and its surrounding areas now having the potential to become a vibrant and competitive automotive development area,” Amirudin said.
As such, the state government will continue to use economic development to improve people's quality of life, while also supporting communities through smaller scale infrastructure projects.
The Selangor Penyayang programme has allocated RM80.1 million for 1,834 rakyat infrastructure projects since 2022, including drainage and irrigation works, bus stops, community halls, and facilities for traders and hawkers.
“These projects reflect that we are not only focusing on large scale projects, such as fish landing centres or projects worth tens of billions of ringgit, but also projects that directly benefit the people,” he said.
