KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 18 — Prominent social activist Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir ridiculed today a suggestion by Islamist group Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) that Malaysia could still be a high-income nation in six years if women stay at home and raise children while the men earn their daily bread.

The eldest daughter of former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad called the idea old-fashioned and questioned the practicality of it in a Facebook post that accompanied Malay Mail Online's report on Isma’s statement earlier today.

“How very retro! So what do we do with the fact that only 30 per cent of our university undergrads are male?

“What sort of high-achieving jobs to become a high-income nation are the other men supposed to do?” she asked.

Dr Nur Farrah Nadia Najib, who heads Isma’s family and society bureau, argued that Malaysia can still be a high-income nation if its men remain the main breadwinners and its women focused on raising children, amid concerns over the effect of youth marriages on the economy.

“A high income nation must not rely on women as the major contributor but rather men should lead the workforce and put their biggest effort in shaping the nation,” she wrote on the group’s web site.

Citing the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Dr Nur Farrah listed Japan as an example of a successful nation with low involvement of women in the workforce, making up about 40 per cent of the workforce and only 1.2 per cent of board members in major corporations.

However in September, WSJ reported that Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is urging more women to join the East Asian country’s male-dominated workforce which is dwindling due to aging population, and is affecting Japan’s productivity and global competitiveness.

“We just need the right person for the right job. Our male counterparts actively involved in workforce and being high achievers,” Dr Nur Farrah said.

“Our females need to be highly educated in various skills to bring up healthy, successful girls and boys and must contribute to the community in a way that best suits them,” she added, without elaborating further.

In a response to another Facebook user’s post who had expressed his concern for his future family here, Marina assured the man that groups such as Isma will not “go far”.

“These people have no clue about anything especially about economics and development,” she said.