While its towns bear the consequences of extreme weather, experts and politicians push for a long-awaited climate bill to be signed into law.

MANY Malaysians remember the floods of December 2021, when roads turned to rivers, and homes were swept away or submerged by rising water. 

The disaster claimed 50 lives, at least 400,000 people had to be evacuated and financial losses were estimated at RM6.1 billion, according to a 2022 analysis by Serina Rahman, an environmental anthropologist.

Young Syefura Othman, the member of parliament for Bentong district in Pahang, recalls how three consecutive days of pelting rain inundated her constituency. The flooding happened “of course because of climate change,” she said.

(A man walks through floodwaters in Taman Sri Muda, Malaysia, December 2021  | Image: Alamy)