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The COVID-19 Pandemic Situation in Malaysia: Lessons Learned from the Perspective of Population Density

Author

Listed:
  • Siew Bee Aw

    (Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai 81300, Johor, Malaysia)

  • Bor Tsong Teh

    (Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai 81300, Johor, Malaysia)

  • Gabriel Hoh Teck Ling

    (Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai 81300, Johor, Malaysia)

  • Pau Chung Leng

    (Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai 81300, Johor, Malaysia)

  • Weng Howe Chan

    (School of Computing, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai 81300, Johor, Malaysia)

  • Mohd Hamdan Ahmad

    (Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai 81300, Johor, Malaysia)

Abstract

This paper attempts to ascertain the impacts of population density on the spread and severity of COVID-19 in Malaysia. Besides describing the spatio-temporal contagion risk of the virus, ultimately, it seeks to test the hypothesis that higher population density results in exacerbated COVID-19 virulence in the community. The population density of 143 districts in Malaysia, as per data from Malaysia’s 2010 population census, was plotted against cumulative COVID-19 cases and infection rates of COVID-19 cases, which were obtained from Malaysia’s Ministry of Health official website. The data of these three variables were collected between 19 January 2020 and 31 December 2020. Based on the observations, districts that have high population densities and are highly inter-connected with neighbouring districts, whether geographically, socio-economically, or infrastructurally, tend to experience spikes in COVID-19 cases within weeks of each other. Using a parametric approach of the Pearson correlation, population density was found to have a moderately strong relationship to cumulative COVID-19 cases ( p -value of 0.000 and R 2 of 0.415) and a weak relationship to COVID-19 infection rates ( p -value of 0.005 and R 2 of 0.047). Consequently, we provide several non-pharmaceutical lessons, including urban planning strategies, as passive containment measures that may better support disease interventions against future contagious diseases.

Suggested Citation

  • Siew Bee Aw & Bor Tsong Teh & Gabriel Hoh Teck Ling & Pau Chung Leng & Weng Howe Chan & Mohd Hamdan Ahmad, 2021. "The COVID-19 Pandemic Situation in Malaysia: Lessons Learned from the Perspective of Population Density," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(12), pages 1-21, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:12:p:6566-:d:577338
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Carozzi, Felipe & Provenzano, Sandro & Roth, Sefi, 2020. "Urban Density and COVID-19," IZA Discussion Papers 13440, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Gabriel Hoh Teck Ling & Nur Amiera binti Md Suhud & Pau Chung Leng & Lee Bak Yeo & Chin Tiong Cheng & Mohd Hamdan Haji Ahmad & Ak Mohd Rafiq Ak Matusin, 2021. "Factors Influencing Asia-Pacific Countries’ Success Level in Curbing COVID-19: A Review Using a Social–Ecological System (SES) Framework," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-27, February.
    3. Ling, Gabriel Hoh Teck & Suhud, Nur Amiera binti Md & Leng, Pau Chung & Yeo, Lee Bak & Cheng, Chin Tiong & Ahmad, Mohd Hamdan Haji & Matusin, AK Mohd Rafiq AK, 2021. "Factors Influencing Asia-Pacific Countries’ Success Level in Curbing COVID-19: A Review Using a Social–Ecological System (SES) Framework," SocArXiv b9f2w, Center for Open Science.
    4. Carozzi, Felipe & Provenzano, Sandro & Roth, Sefi, 2020. "Urban density and Covid-19," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 108484, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Shima Hamidi & Sadegh Sabouri & Reid Ewing, 2020. "Does Density Aggravate the COVID-19 Pandemic?," Journal of the American Planning Association, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 86(4), pages 495-509, October.
    6. Felipe Carozzi & Sandro Provenzano & Sefi Roth, 2020. "Urban density and Covid-19," CEP Discussion Papers dp1711, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
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    Cited by:

    1. Roula Maya, 2024. "Social and Spatial Inequalities during COVID-19: Evidence from France and the Need for a New Sustainable Urban and Regional Development Paradigm," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-29, April.
    2. Nuur Hafizah Md Iderus & Sarbhan Singh Lakha Singh & Sumarni Mohd Ghazali & Cheong Yoon Ling & Tan Cia Vei & Ahmed Syahmi Syafiq Md Zamri & Nadhar Ahmad Jaafar & Qistina Ruslan & Nur Huda Ahmad Jaghfa, 2022. "Correlation between Population Density and COVID-19 Cases during the Third Wave in Malaysia: Effect of the Delta Variant," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-17, June.
    3. Marija Jevtic & Vlatka Matkovic & Milica Paut Kusturica & Catherine Bouland, 2022. "Build Healthier: Post-COVID-19 Urban Requirements for Healthy and Sustainable Living," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-21, July.
    4. Yu Gong, 2023. "The impact of China’s financial policy on economic resilience during the pandemic period," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 56(4), pages 2493-2509, August.

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