Malaysia

About the Flag

Located in southeastern Asia, Malaysia is a federation of thirteen states comprising eleven from Peninsula Malaysia and two from the island of Borneo (Sabah and Sarawak). The capital city is Kuala Lumpur, and the official language is Malay. Malaysia was a colony of the British Empire until 1957. Today it is a constitutional monarchy. The Paramount Ruler is the Chief of State and the Prime Minister is the Head of Government. There is a bicameral parliament. The legal system is based on English common law. Malaysia is a member of the Commonwealth, ASEAN, the UN, and the IMO.

The Malaysian economy is a mixture of private enterprise and a well-managed public sector. Chief trading partners are Singapore and the United States. Principal exports are electronic equipment, petroleum and petroleum products, palm oil, and wood and wood products. The currency is the ringgit.

Registration of ships in Malaysia follows an almost identical practice as in the United Kingdom from which most of the existing Malaysian maritime laws and administrative practices are derived. The law governing ship registration is the Merchant Shipping Ordinance 1952.

The Directorate General of the Marine Department oversees the Malaysian Ship Registry, the Malaysian International Ship Registry, as well as the Langkawi International Yacht Registry.