THERE is little evidence of a baby boom following the implementation of the two-month movement-control order (MCO) last March when most Malaysians were home bound, according to the Department of Statistics.

On the contrary, official figures released by the department indicate that the birth rate in Malaysia is on a downward trend throughout the months following the MCO.

There were 121,251 births recorded in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2020, which is a 2.5% drop compared with 124,384 births in Q4 2019, according to the figures.

Records from Malaysian demographic statistics show that 62,850 male babies and 58,392 female babies were born in the last quarter.

Data from October to December 2020, which was provided to The Malaysian Insight, also show a drop in the infant mortality rate. 

There were also 44,390 deaths in the same quarter.

The country’s population has also increased around 0.4% from 32.59 million in Q4 2019, to 32.73 million in Q4 2020. 

The largest demographic group consisted of those between the ages of 15 and 64 at 22.82 million. The second largest group comprised children up till 14 at 7.57 million. The number of senior citizens, aged 65 years and older, totalled 2.34 million.

The MCO was first introduced on March 18 to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Its objective was to restrict public movement and daily activities, including work travel and to require the public to remain at home.

This policy gave rise to the speculation that there will be a baby boom as families were stuck at home.

At the same time, the MCO also resulted in job losses, which hit 5.3% in May before dropping slightly to 4.8% in last December.

The MCO was then replaced by the conditional MCO on May 4. The recovery MCO then kicked in from June 9.

The number of marriages also decreased throughout the months that followed MCO and most newlyweds opted for small-scale weddings.

At the same time, reports of domestic violence rose during the pandemic, which closely correlate with financial distress and physical distance between spouses because of the MCO.

One lawyer also told The Malaysian Insight that there was a rise in demand for consultation and divorce proceedings since the MCO started.

Most clients made the decision to divorce to protect their respective interest due to existing uncertainties and instability of the current economy, he said.

This trend follows the pattern from the previous year.

The Malaysia marriage and divorce statistics 2020 show that the number of new marriages decreased compared with the previous year.

Chief statistician Mohd Uzir Mahidin said 2019 also witnessed a 1.2% decline in married households, from 206,352 in 2019 to 203,821 in the previous year.

The government introduced a second round of MCO on January 13 this year following a spike in Covid-19 cases. – February 14, 2021.