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KUALA LUMPUR, March 11 — The majority of Malaysians do not see the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic as differentiating between men and women, a new survey showed.
Conducted by market research company Ipsos, the survey between January 22 and February 5 revealed that 80 per cent of its Malaysian respondents say they believe both genders were equally impacted by the pandemic.
Behind Malaysia in second place is China with 69 per cent of respondents sharing that view, followed by the United States with 65 per cent, Great Britain with 63 per cent, and South Korea with 41 per cent.
However, Ipsos also found that only 30 per cent of Malaysian respondents said more support is needed for women and girls who face violence and abuse during this time, compared to the 36 per cent global country average.
The survey was conducted as part of the International Women's Day 2021, which fell on March 8.
In all other respects, Malaysia ranked higher than the global average on matters such as the perception that social assistance including cash and food support is vital for women, to which 47 per cent of Malaysians agreed. The global country average is 30 per cent.
Similarly, 43 per cent of Malaysians also believe in more flexible working practices such as working from home for women, in contrast to the global country average of 40 per cent.
Better access to healthcare services is also important for 37 per cent of Malaysians while only 33 per cent of the global country average agree, as is better mental health support services for 34 per cent of Malaysians, which only 24 per cent of the global country average agreed to.
Ipsos' online survey was participated by 20,520 adults aged 16 to 74 across 28 countries.
