Malaysia ranks 9th best site for expatriate retirement; up a notch in Corruption Perception Index

Malaysia which has been promoting the country under Malaysia My second Home Programme, was placed at a strong 9 th position as a retirement haven for expatriates, under the 15th Annual Global Retirement Index, recently released by International Living magazine. Mexico emerged as the best retirement location followed by Ecuador , Italy , Panama and Australia , as the top five countries in the survey.

Malaysia's high ranking is attributed to the country's good infrastructure and modern facilities; low cost of living, pleasant weather, political stability; friendly people and that English is widely spoken. In addition, expatriate retirees also benefit from the Government incentives under Malaysia My second Home Programme, which has to-date drawn some 10,600 expatriates mainly from China, Bangladesh and the United Kingdom.

Another global survey - the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) 2007 by Transparency International has put Malaysia a notch up at 43rd spot among 180 countries with a score of 5.1. Among the Asean countries, Singapore topped the list at 4 th position; while Vietnam was at 123; Philippines at 131 and Indonesia at 143. Meanwhile, China and India were both placed at the same 72nd position.

Transparency International-Malaysia Founding President, Tunku Abdul Aziz Ibrahim said there was still much to work on even though this was the best ranking to-date for the country since the index started in 1995.