The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia
This study unravelled the economic impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on low-income households. The asymmetric economic impacts of the pandemic that are biased towards the poor, young, and women have been well established. However, micro evidence on the poor is limited, thus demandin...
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| Format: | Article |
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Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
2023
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| _version_ | 1811137926603472896 |
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| author | Zakaria, Roza Hazli Sabri, Mohamad Fazli Mohd Satar, Nurulhuda Magli, Amirah Shazana |
| author_facet | Zakaria, Roza Hazli Sabri, Mohamad Fazli Mohd Satar, Nurulhuda Magli, Amirah Shazana |
| author_sort | Zakaria, Roza Hazli |
| collection | UPM |
| description | This study unravelled the economic impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on low-income households. The asymmetric economic impacts of the pandemic that are biased towards the poor, young, and women have been well established. However, micro evidence on the poor is limited, thus demanding detailed understanding to design an effective targeted assistance. In this study, data were gathered from face-to-face interviews using a sampling frame provided by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM). Online data collection was dismissed to ensure all low-income households had the same chance to participate, as some might have no online access. Logistic regressions were estimated to identify the characteristics of households that suffered job loss and income reduction. The findings revealed that one in ten households experienced job loss during the pandemic, while one third survived with lower income. The extent of income reduction was rather severe, as the pandemic had reduced income generation by more than half among the affected households. The regression outcomes showed that the higher-income households among the low-income households had higher chances of experiencing income reduction. A similar scenario was noted for less-educated households. Notably, the adverse impacts were not biased toward female-headed households, as is widely perceived. There was no evidence that economic sectors explained job losses, but households involved in the agriculture, domestic, and transportation sectors had higher chances of suffering from income reduction. These results suggest that monetary government assistance should not rely on general indicators, such as female-headed households and below-poverty-line income (PLI). Instead, a more effective measure is to look at other characteristics, such as employment type, education level, and job sectors. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-25T03:42:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | upm.eprints-109370 |
| institution | Universiti Putra Malaysia |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-25T03:42:04Z |
| publishDate | 2023 |
| publisher | Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | upm.eprints-1093702024-08-05T03:30:54Z http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/109370/ The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia Zakaria, Roza Hazli Sabri, Mohamad Fazli Mohd Satar, Nurulhuda Magli, Amirah Shazana This study unravelled the economic impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on low-income households. The asymmetric economic impacts of the pandemic that are biased towards the poor, young, and women have been well established. However, micro evidence on the poor is limited, thus demanding detailed understanding to design an effective targeted assistance. In this study, data were gathered from face-to-face interviews using a sampling frame provided by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM). Online data collection was dismissed to ensure all low-income households had the same chance to participate, as some might have no online access. Logistic regressions were estimated to identify the characteristics of households that suffered job loss and income reduction. The findings revealed that one in ten households experienced job loss during the pandemic, while one third survived with lower income. The extent of income reduction was rather severe, as the pandemic had reduced income generation by more than half among the affected households. The regression outcomes showed that the higher-income households among the low-income households had higher chances of experiencing income reduction. A similar scenario was noted for less-educated households. Notably, the adverse impacts were not biased toward female-headed households, as is widely perceived. There was no evidence that economic sectors explained job losses, but households involved in the agriculture, domestic, and transportation sectors had higher chances of suffering from income reduction. These results suggest that monetary government assistance should not rely on general indicators, such as female-headed households and below-poverty-line income (PLI). Instead, a more effective measure is to look at other characteristics, such as employment type, education level, and job sectors. Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute 2023-05-22 Article PeerReviewed Zakaria, Roza Hazli and Sabri, Mohamad Fazli and Mohd Satar, Nurulhuda and Magli, Amirah Shazana (2023) The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia. Sustainability, 15 (10). art. no. 8396. pp. 1-18. ISSN 2071-1050 https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/10/8396 10.3390/su15108396 |
| spellingShingle | Zakaria, Roza Hazli Sabri, Mohamad Fazli Mohd Satar, Nurulhuda Magli, Amirah Shazana The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia |
| title | The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia |
| title_full | The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia |
| title_fullStr | The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia |
| title_full_unstemmed | The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia |
| title_short | The immediate impacts of COVID-19 on low-income households: evidence from Malaysia |
| title_sort | immediate impacts of covid 19 on low income households evidence from malaysia |
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