Kuala Lumpur, July 11 -- Malaysia's population is projected to reach its peak of 42.38 million in 2059, before slowly declining starting 2060, official projections indicated.

The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said in a statement today that although the population will continue to increase from 2020 to 2059, the growth rate is expected to decline sharply from 1.7% in 2020 to just 0.1% in 2060.

Both male and female populations are projected to consistently increase from 2020 to 2060, and the number of males is projected to outnumber females.

Meanwhile, the sex ratio is projected to increase from 110 in 2020 to 114 males per 100 females by 2060.

The population aged 0-14 (young age) is expected to decline from 24% in ...