The Orang Asli Community's Socioeconomic Status of Kampung Gedung Siam, Pahang Malaysia and its Implications to Their Health

Abstract

Advancement of technology and development in Malaysia has increased the life span of Malaysians in general. But the Orang Asli community is still experiencing very low socioeconomic and health advancements. Their living space in the interior jungles, urban periphery, and a few in urban locations make these luxuries not easily accessed by them. Simple profiling was conducted to investigate the current prevalent situation in Kampung Gedung Siam, Pahang. This location was selected based on suggestions by Jabatan Kemajuan Orang Asli (JAKOA). The settlement, originally a virgin jungle, is now a commercial rubber and palm oil plantation. A total of 6 enumerators interviewed the Orang Asli who had converged at the Balai Raya to attend a workshop on street light solar panel maintenance and care. The location does not have a medical or health clinic in the village. The nearest clinic or hospital is 30 minutes away. The Kampung Gedung Siam’s residents rely on private vehicles to get them to the nearest health facility. A total of 27 Orang Asli were interviewed in Kampung Gedung Siam. Results showed that the average number of children is 3.26 among the Gedung Siam villagers, 17 (62.96%) families have three children or less, and five (18.51%) families with no children. Only two respondents stated that they were not well. The average monthly income is RM437.03, placing them at the bottom of the hard-core poor in society. Orang Asli is known to rely on traditional medication for common illnesses like colds, fever, and muscle aches. This is not different for the community under study. As policy recommendations, the traditional health practices and the use of various medicinal herbs need to be documented and studied to validate their relevance for use in society to mitigate the rising cost of living and alleviate the health status of the Orang Asli community in Malaysia.