Municipal waste recycled in Malaysia
Malaysia: Municipal waste recycled was 5.40 million tonnes in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Municipal waste recycled in Malaysia, 2000–2023
Source: United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
The most recent figure for municipal waste recycled in Malaysia is 5.40 million tonnes, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.
That represents a change of up 9.5% on the previous year and up 241.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, municipal waste recycled in Malaysia peaked at 5.40 million tonnes in 2023 and was at its lowest, 318,862 tonnes, in 2000.
Malaysia ranks 12th of 90 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Municipal waste recycled in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 318,862 tonnes | — |
| 2001 | 336,325 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2002 | 354,745 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2003 | 374,174 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2004 | 394,666 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2005 | 416,281 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2006 | 439,080 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2007 | 463,127 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2008 | 488,492 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2009 | 515,245 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2010 | 543,464 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2011 | 573,228 tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2012 | 1.32 million tonnes | +130.8% |
| 2013 | 1.58 million tonnes | +19.4% |
| 2014 | 1.65 million tonnes | +4.3% |
| 2015 | 2.05 million tonnes | +24.2% |
| 2016 | 2.37 million tonnes | +15.7% |
| 2017 | 2.87 million tonnes | +20.9% |
| 2018 | 3.36 million tonnes | +17.4% |
| 2019 | 3.88 million tonnes | +15.4% |
| 2020 | 4.39 million tonnes | +13.0% |
| 2021 | 4.63 million tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2022 | 4.93 million tonnes | +6.7% |
| 2023 | 5.40 million tonnes | +9.5% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 5.40 million tonnes is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 382,150 tonnes, 14.1× the median. (22 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 5.40 million tonnes is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.09 million tonnes, 1.7× the median. (10 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Municipal waste recycled in Malaysia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | +130.8% | 573,228 tonnes | 1.32 million tonnes |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 410,100 tonnes | 318,862 tonnes | 515,245 tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.02 million tonnes | 543,464 tonnes | 3.88 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.84 million tonnes | 4.39 million tonnes | 5.40 million tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More environment data for Malaysia
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -1.65 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -1.9 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.179 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.25 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate -2.55 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 4.33 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 0.9114 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is municipal waste recycled in Malaysia?
- Municipal waste recycled in Malaysia was 5.40 million tonnes in 2023, according to United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest municipal waste recycled recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 5.40 million tonnes in 2023.
- What is the lowest municipal waste recycled recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 318,862 tonnes in 2000.
- How does Malaysia rank for municipal waste recycled?
- Malaysia ranks 12th out of 90 countries with data for 2023.
- Is municipal waste recycled rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 241.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Municipal waste recycled. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Municipal waste recycled (Tonnes).