General Info

People & Language

Malays comprise 57% of the population, while the Chinese, Indian and Bumiputeras and other races make up the rest of the country’s population. While Malay is the national language the many ethnic groups also converse in their various languages and dialects, but English is also widely spoken. Islam is the official religion of the country, but other religions such as Buddhism and Christianity are widely and freely practiced.

Dressing Up in Malaysia

Malaysia is a predominantly Muslim country, and this fact should be taken deeply into consideration when choosing which clothes to wear when going around. It is advisable to wear conservative clothing especially in rural areas, or when planning to enter a mosque or other places of worship. Ladies are advised to wear loose and long pants or skirts, and long-sleeved shirts especially when entering places of worship. Shorts, sleeveless shirts, and revealing clothes should be avoided – the shoulders should almost always be covered; however, dressing up in metropolitan areas such as the capital Kuala Lumpur can be more relaxed.

Shoes and other footwear are removed before entering a mosque or place of worship, and this practice is also followed in most Malaysian homes (to keep dirt from being brought inside the house). You can usually determine the number of people in a house by checking out the pairs of footwear left outside the door; numerous pairs of shoes by the doorway may mean that there is a large gathering of people inside the house.

Weather

The country experiences tropical weather year-round. Temperatures range from 21°C (70°F) to 32°C (90°F). Higher elevations are much colder with temperatures between 15°C (59°F) to 25°C (77°F). Annual rainfall varies from 2,000mm to 2,500mm. However, the wettest parts of Malaysia could well be the hill slopes of Sarawak’s inland areas, which receive a mean annual rainfall exceeding 5,000mm.

Time Zone

Kuala Lumpur operates on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) + 8 hours.

Electricity

Voltage is 220 – 240 Volt AC at 50 cycles per second. Malaysia uses standard 3-pin square plugs and sockets.

Currency

The monetary unit of the country is Ringgit Malaysia and is written as RM or MYR. Notes are available in RM1, RM5, RM10, RM20, RM50, and RM100 denominations, while coins are issued in 5, 10, 20 and 50 sen (cents) denominations. Foreign currencies can be exchanged at banks and cash lenders like 27 Cash Advance.

Banking Hours

Monday – Friday (9.00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.)
Closes on weekends and public holidays.

Insurance

Registration fees do not include insurance of any kind. It is strongly recommended that all delegates take out their own travel and medical insurance prior to coming to the Conference. The policy should include loss of fees/ deposit through cancellation of your participation in the meeting, or through cancellation of the meeting itself, loss of airfares for any reason, medical expenses, loss or damage to personal property, additional expenses and repatriation should travel arrangements have to be altered. Neither the meeting secretariat nor the organising committee will take any responsibility for any participant failing to insure. Please speak to your travel agent or airline in regard to this matter.