The number of foreigners, which accounts for 7.4% of the total populace, is estimated to drop to 2.4 million this year from 2.6 million in 2021, according a report from the department of statistics.

Malaysia is projected to get slightly older this year with the median age increasing to 30.4 years from 30.1 years in 2021.

Malaysia’s slowing population growth is projected to be in line with other countries, including Singapore (-0.3%), Australia (+1.3%), UK (+0.4%), Japan (-0.3%), and New Zealand (+1.3%), according to the report.

The country’s overall population is estimated to reach 32.7 million this year, with ethnic Malays increasing their share to 69.9%.

The composition of ethnic Chinese and Indian populations decreased to 22.8% and 6.6% respectively.