Johari Abdul: Parliament must tackle Malaysia’s ageing, smaller families through effective legislation

Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul emphasized the need for parliament to address demographic challenges such as ageing populations and smaller families through effective laws, budgets, and policies.

Speaking at the Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (AFPPD) Annual Conference 2026 in Kuala Lumpur, he highlighted the political nature of population issues and the necessity of embedding public priorities in legislative and government frameworks.

Johari celebrated the establishment of the AFPPD Global Secretariat in Malaysia as a pivotal step for enhancing parliamentary cooperation on demographic and development issues.

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 4 — Parliament must translate demographic challenges such as ageing populations, smaller families and changing intergenerational needs into concrete laws, budgets and policies, said Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul.

He said population and development issues were ultimately political questions as public priorities must find expression through legislation, institutions and government spending.

“Words create attention. Attention creates pressure. Pressure creates priorities and priorities eventually appear in legislation, institutions and budgets,” he said at a welcome dinner he hosted for participants of the Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (AFPPD) Annual Conference 2026 here yesterday.

Also present were Works Minister and President of AFPPD Malaysia Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi and his deputy, who is also Ipoh Timur Member of Parliament Howard Lee Chuan How.

Johari said he was pleased that ageing, an issue often associated with criticism or speculation in political circles, was instead being given a firm place on the policy agenda at the conference.

“Parliamentarians have a complicated relationship with age. When we are young, people tell us we lack experience. When we acquire experience, people begin asking when we intend to retire.

“So I am delighted to attend a conference where, for once, ageing is neither criticism nor speculation. It is an important item on the agenda,” he said.

Johari said the issues discussed by parliamentarians at the conference went beyond population statistics, encompassing how societies prepare young people for adulthood, support families, value care and enable women to participate fully in society.

He said they also included the challenge of responding to longer life expectancy at a time when families were becoming smaller.

According to Johari, the work of AFPPD was particularly important as demographic changes unfolded over decades, while electoral politics often operated within much shorter timeframes.

Recalling Malaysia’s journey towards hosting the AFPPD Global Secretariat, he said the initiative began after AFPPD Malaysia returned from Tokyo in April 2024, when then deputy president Lee approached him with the proposal.

He said Lee had explained why Malaysia was well positioned to host the secretariat and why Parliament should provide the necessary political and institutional support.

Johari said he subsequently participated in AFPPD Malaysia’s regional meeting in Kuala Lumpur in July 2024, which focused on ageing preparedness and the care economy.

“Two years later, the Global Secretariat is here. So Howard (Lee), congratulations. You kept pursuing it through Parliament, government and AFPPD, and you have delivered what you said Malaysia should set out to achieve,” he added.

Johari congratulated AFPPD, its member states, Nanta and the entire team on establishing the Global Secretariat in Malaysia, stressing that its success should not be measured by the number of conferences or communiques issued, but by whether parliamentary cooperation translates into laws, budgets, oversight and action.

He said the inauguration of the AFPPD Global Secretariat office in Kuala Lumpur tomorrow would mark a new chapter in parliamentary cooperation on population and development.

The two-day conference, themed “Parliamentary Leadership for the Future: An All of Society Approach to the Care Economy and Demographic Resilience”, brings together parliamentarians from Asia, the Pacific, Africa and the Arab world. — Bernama

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国会下议院议长丹斯里佐哈里·阿卜杜勒强调，国会需要通过有效的法律、预算和政策来应对人口老龄化和家庭规模缩小等人口挑战。

他在吉隆坡举行的 2026 年亚洲议员人口与发展论坛 (AFPPD) 年会上发表讲话，强调了人口问题的政治性质以及将公共优先事项纳入立法和政府框架的必要性。

乔哈里对马来西亚成立的AFPPD全球秘书处表示欢迎，认为这是加强议会在人口与发展问题上合作的关键一步。

吉隆坡，9月4日讯——下议院议长丹斯里佐哈里·阿卜杜勒表示，国会必须将人口老龄化、家庭规模缩小和代际需求变化等人口挑战转化为具体的法律、预算和政策。

他表示，人口和发展问题归根结底是政治问题，因为公众的优先事项必须通过立法、制度和政府支出来表达。

“言辞能引起关注。关注能产生压力。压力能产生优先事项，而优先事项最终会体现在立法、机构和预算中，”他昨天在此为2026年亚洲议员人口与发展论坛（AFPPD）年会与会者举办的欢迎晚宴上说道。

出席者包括工程部长兼马来西亚 AFPPD 主席拿督斯里亚历山大南达林吉及其副手、怡保东区国会议员霍华德李传豪。

乔哈里表示，他很高兴老龄化问题（这个问题在政治圈中经常与批评或猜测联系在一起）在本次会议的政策议程中占据了重要地位。

“议员们与年龄的关系很复杂。年轻时，人们说我们缺乏经验。积累了经验后，人们又开始问我们何时打算退休。”

“所以我很高兴能参加这次会议，因为这一次，老龄化问题既不是批评也不是猜测，而是议程上的一个重要议题，”他说。

乔哈里表示，议员们在会议上讨论的问题不仅限于人口统计数据，还包括社会如何让年轻人为成年做好准备、支持家庭、重视关怀以及使妇女能够充分参与社会。

他还表示，他们面临的挑战还包括如何在家庭规模越来越小的情况下应对预期寿命延长的问题。

乔哈里认为，由于人口变化持续了几十年，而选举政治往往在更短的时间范围内运作，因此 AFPPD 的工作尤为重要。

回顾马来西亚筹办 AFPPD 全球秘书处的历程，他表示，这项倡议始于 2024 年 4 月 AFPPD 马来西亚从东京返回之后，当时的副主席李向他提出了这项提议。

他说，李光耀解释了为什么马来西亚具备承办秘书处的良好条件，以及为什么国会应该提供必要的政治和制度支持。

Johari表示，他随后参加了2024年7月在吉隆坡举行的AFPPD马来西亚区域会议，会议重点讨论了老龄化准备和护理经济。

“两年后，全球秘书处成立了。所以，霍华德（李），祝贺你。你坚持不懈地通过国会、政府和亚洲金融政策发展局（AFPPD）推进这项工作，最终实现了你所说的马来西亚应该努力达成的目标，”他补充道。

乔哈里祝贺AFPPD、其成员国、南塔以及整个团队在马来西亚建立全球秘书处，并强调其成功不应以会议或公报的数量来衡量，而应以议会合作是否转化为法律、预算、监督和行动来衡量。

他表示，明天在吉隆坡举行的AFPPD全球秘书处办公室落成典礼将标志着议会在人口与发展方面合作的新篇章。

为期两天的会议以“面向未来的议会领导力：全社会参与的照护经济与人口韧性应对策略”为主题，汇聚了来自亚洲、太平洋地区、非洲和阿拉伯世界的议员。——马新社

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