The Malay Worldview and the Question of Poverty: Towards a Human-Centred Development Economics

Abstract

Contemporary development economics has largely approached poverty through material, quantitative, and technocratic indicators, often neglecting the ethical, cultural, and civilisational dimensions of human well-being. Within the context of the Alam Melayu, such approaches inadequately capture indigenous understandings of development rooted in communal harmony, moral economy, social justice, and human dignity. Despite the growing discourse on alternative development paradigms, limited scholarly attention has been given to the Malay worldview as a conceptual foundation for rethinking poverty and human-centred development. This article examines how the Malay worldview articulates the meaning of poverty and development beyond conventional economic reductionism. Employing a qualitative and interpretive methodology, the study draws upon textual analysis of selected Malay intellectual traditions, development discourses, and the works of key thinkers such as Ungku Aziz. The discussion highlights the embedded relationship between economy, ethics, religion, and social responsibility within the Malay conception of development. The findings suggest that poverty in the Malay worldview is understood not merely as material deprivation, but as a multidimensional condition affecting human dignity, social balance, and collective well-being. The article argues for a human-centred development economics grounded in indigenous and civilisational perspectives of the Alam Melayu.

Keywords: Malay worldview; poverty; human-centred development; development economics; Alam Melayu

Abstrak

Ekonomi pembangunan kontemporari lazimnya mendekati persoalan kemiskinan melalui indikator material, kuantitatif, dan teknokratik semata-mata, sehingga sering mengabaikan dimensi etika, budaya, dan ketamadunan dalam kesejahteraan manusia. Dalam konteks Alam Melayu, pendekatan sedemikian didapati kurang berupaya memahami makna pembangunan yang berakar daripada nilai kebersamaan, ekonomi moral, keadilan sosial, dan martabat insan. Walaupun wacana mengenai paradigma pembangunan alternatif semakin berkembang, perhatian ilmiah terhadap pandangan alam Melayu sebagai asas konseptual untuk menilai semula kemiskinan dan pembangunan berteraskan insan masih terbatas. Artikel ini meneliti bagaimana pandangan alam Melayu menghuraikan persoalan kemiskinan dan pembangunan melangkaui kerangka ekonomi konvensional yang bersifat reduksionis. Kajian ini menggunakan metodologi kualitatif dan pendekatan interpretatif melalui analisis teks terhadap tradisi intelektual Melayu terpilih, wacana pembangunan, serta pemikiran tokoh seperti Ungku Aziz. Perbincangan menunjukkan bahawa hubungan antara ekonomi, etika, agama, dan tanggungjawab sosial merupakan unsur yang saling terjalin dalam faham pembangunan Melayu. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan bahawa kemiskinan dalam pandangan alam Melayu bukan sekadar kekurangan material, tetapi suatu keadaan multidimensi yang menjejaskan martabat insan, keseimbangan sosial, dan kesejahteraan kolektif. Artikel ini menghujahkan keperluan terhadap ekonomi pembangunan berteraskan insan yang diasaskan kepada perspektif peribumi dan ketamadunan Alam Melayu.