Professional Documents
Culture Documents
UNIVERSITY OF HERTFORDSHIRE
Members:
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2.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
“The anticipation, the presentation, and the fulfillment we please you all the way”
Brief Introduction
Think of your dream wedding, birthday party, promotion party, annual dinner or
any other function you wish to host or be part of, just think of it the way you want it, with
all the delicacies you wish your guests to enjoy; dream no more because we are here.
Any person organizing a function wants things to be their way, and do not bother hiring
event planners that charge exorbitantly high prices and do some things that can be done
The most important part of any function is the food beverages offered and that’s what we
offer we pride ourselves on the quality of products that we serve and entitle you to the
best.
Major Aspects of the marketing plan (market opportunity & key elements in the
marketing plan.
1.8 million of which 47.9% are termed as middle income earners, defined as those who
earn between RM 1200-3499. On average a middle income house hold earns RM 3011.
Kuala Lumpur itself and mainly consist of restaurants that have diversified into this
sector and offer the service as a convenience. They advertise their image as low cost
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Securing only 5% of the catering market assuming that out of 143700 middle
income house holds in Kuala Lumpur half of them hold a function in three years will
result in at least 25 caterings per week guaranteeing revenues and a positive cash flow.
The product offering is an augmented product, its service and product elements
are entwined into one. Its product features have the characteristics that instill confidence
and exclusive tantalizing dishes being the main features of the product. The product
offerings come in menu packages and serve 10 people per package; four menus been
introduced to serve the vast culture groups of Malaysia, namely; Malay, Indian, Chinese
and snack. Each menu has a vast array of scrumptious delicacies to choose from.
The price entirely depends on the type of menu and the varieties in the menu are
of the standard price regardless of the choice customers prefer. The Malay menu goes
for RM 250 per 10 people, The Indian menu goes for RM 300 per 10 people, the
Chinese menu goes for RM 300 per 10 people and lastly the Snack menu is for RM 150
per 10 people.
The main promotion media that’s going to be used to attract the target customers
is the newspaper. Mostly because the target customers are the working population, and
tend to read the newspaper more often hence wider coverage leading to lower coverage
Customers enjoy the facility of the service being brought to their doorstep, or any
place they want it. The business will undertake all transportation setting up and any
convenient location in the central district of the city and accommodates facilities that
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show the services offered and different settings available. More convenience is offered
The physical evidence is constructed to fit the occasion, décor, lighting, props,
themes, flowers innovative menus and much more are used to create the right look, feel
A team of highly skilled employees are selected and put through extensive tests
before being hired and excel in hospitality management. Their main function is to
pamper guests like they have never been done before and be helpful in any manner
possible. Lend your taste buds to our culinary experts who offer tantalizing tastes,
From the moment an order is placed; a systematic turn of events begins, all
satisfaction. The process is monitored to ensure there are no misshapes that affect your
function. Our process is bound to stun you and give you the ultimate occurrence.
Budget Statement
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3.0 TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Introduction
2. Situational Analysis
3. Marketing Planning
i) Marketing objectives
5. Summary
7. References
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4.0 INTRODUCTION
Everyone loves to eat, that's a fact. Think about when you hosted your last dinner
party. You wanted the food and drinks to be mouth watering and plentiful and your
guests to walk away feeling content with satisfaction. When you have got a big event to
plan, whether it's a Wedding, Birthday Party, or Corporate Event, and hundreds of
guests are coming, the food and drinks need to be perfect, but you've got no time to
even think about the preparation. That is when you need to hire a good caterer, who
employs the services of the best chefs and cooks. A caterer is all a person will ask for
when it comes to the issue of food catering for such events, it is essential that the
catering service offers outstanding quality items right at your backyard and fully at the
Malaysian food is not one particular distinction of food but a culinary diversity originating
from its multi ethnic population of mainly Malay, Chinese and Indian hence the menu has
been crafted in such a manner that it gives the consumer a wide array of dishes to
choose from, these dishes are in turn designed and cooked by taking into consideration
the tastes and preferences of each of the culture groups, furthermore what makes the
menu distinct is the amount of effort put into deciding the ingredients to be used for the
each of the dishes. Unlike other food caterers, the diversity in the menu will enable the
firm to meet the demands of the different culture groups, which will in turn enable it to
For the start up of the firm an initial sum of RM 370,000 is required to operate on
a full time basis, although the first period which will be of introduction will not see much
revenue being generated, however when the company steps into the growth and
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succeeding into the maturity stage it will earn a far more favorable income, these
calculations are based on the analysis of our target markets spending capacity and their
behavioral pattern. The investors will therefore see their capital being earned back within
a period of 2 years. For further details on the financial facet, examine the budget
This marketing plan has been constructed to display a detailed situation of the
venture of the catering firm into the market, this report will provide the potential investors
with an in depth information of the market situation and also with a forecast of the goals
to be achieved in the designated period of time.This report has been segmented into 10
respective sections. It initiates with the title page, followed by the executive summary
which gives an overview of the entire marketing plan, after which comes the table of
contents. After the introduction the report talks about the situational analysis, this section
focuses on the environmental aspects of the market which influence the marketing plan.
The situational analysis is followed by the marketing planning where the marketing
objectives, target markets and the marketing mix are enlightened in great detail.
After the marketing plan the report talks on the implementation and control of the
marketing plan which justifies on how the plan will be put into action and managed by
the marketing team. After implementation and control section the plan is summarized
under the summary section which is not much different from the executive but is further
more detailed and lengthy, and also converses on the financial aspect of the plan. The
last part of this marketing plan consists of the references and appendices.
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5.0 SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS
The catering industry is very well rooted in some of the environmental aspects of the
market, such as the legal, economical and social, whereas the political and technological
conditions do not hinder the success or promote failure as much as the legal,
economical and social factors. This marketing plan has been designed in a manner to
cater for all the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that the firm will face in
the market.
To begin with, we shall look at the legal factors that affect the catering firm. Because
the business deals with food the authorities are highly concerned about hygiene
standards and the manner in which the food is cooked, stored and served. This can be a
major fall back for the business if its operations do not meet the required hygiene
standards set by the by the concerned governmental bodies, however the firm will strive
to meet all the hygiene standards by establishing itself as a hygiene catering firm which
makes sure that the food does not cause any health problems to its clients, hence
For the economical factor to be well handled, adequate research is done on the
spending habits of its target customers and the rate of inflation in the country, this
information is thoroughly revised after a certain period. The “sweet n spicy” catering is
targeting the middle income earners who consist of a major part of the society, hence
their spending power and habits are systematically analyzed and used for accomplishing
the firms overall objectives, We have learnt that our target customers prefer using the
services of catering firms for assorted parties which could range from a birthday party to
a wedding reception and are willing to spend only a reasonable amount which is money
for quality, hence they avoid the caterers who serve the high end of the market.
The social factor has been also been taken well into consideration. Due to the ethnic
diversity in the country “sweet n spicy” caterers offer a diverse range of dishes which are
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preferred by the people from different cultural backgrounds. At instances in Malay
weddings and events the catering team may have to split into two, because the Muslim
men are separated from the women and therefore the firm provides a team of women
servers which solely serves the women while the male team serves the men, this social
aspect is very crucial as some clients will not be willing to have the male staff to serve
the women, hence it is very important to take such an issue into consideration and
The catering industry consists of 250-300 caterers who are registered in the
Malaysian yellow pages, this number does not take into account of the several roadside
restaurants which offer catering services but are not specialized in doing so. A
substantial number of these catering firms are targeting high income earners and
business organizations which give out lavish parties at exorbitant rates. Sweet n spicy
on the other hand is targeting the middle income earners who are form a greater share
of the market and there are no adequate caterers to serve this market, hence venturing
into the industry is a great opportunity to gain success. Although the some of the firms
have a higher quality and service standard but they cannot cater for the middle income
earners who cannot afford their prices, while sweet n spicy offers effusively meets the
The threat of new competitors of setting into the industry is most definitely there
but the sweet n spicy will be concentrating on enhancing its services as it proves to be a
more effective and long term solution, rather then reducing the prices to keep the
competitors at bay.
The catering firms which are currently operating in the market have an advantage
in the filed of capital turnover, hence they can afford to budget a significant amount on
sunk cots which makes it very difficult and challenging for Sweet , Spicy to penetrate into
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the market. Once the firm has penetrated into the market, the main task which will lie
ahead is to maintain and enhance the market share to the required level.
estimated, by the end of year 3 we will have to reach the 5% market share out of 143700
middle income households in Kuala Lumpur for our catering services. To reach this
objective, with the estimation within 1 year of period we will at least have 1300 function
for catering services order from customers. That means in 1 week period of time at least
By the end of year 5, our catering services will try to expand to the whole of
Kuala Lumpur city and assuming the market share above 5% out of 143700 middle
If the business is meeting the projections by the year 5, we will start future plans
for the second location and develop plans for the next unit. Probably the second location
we wish to expand is the second largest state in Malaysia i.e. Johor Bahru.
The primary target market for our catering services is Kuala Lumpur which
serves the home to 308,006 households that accommodates a population of 1.8 million
of which 47.9% are termed as middle income earners, defined as those who earn
3011.
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The local middle income households we will target with 4 to 8 members, which is
parent and their two-four children. Middle income households who wish to have the
catering service for special events like Marriage Anniversary, as it is a very special day
for a young or old husband and wife and also for a birthday party for the children to have
good memories of them in future. Mean while, in a special season like Chinese New
Beside that, in more specified we would like to target those who enjoy gathering
with friends, meeting new friends and for formal purpose like annual dinner. We will be
targeting those colleges and universities students who are active in school and social.
We will target this segment because students are more willing to spend as in
comparison to working person. Students also have the ability to pay for the price
because students usually share while paying bill. Students usually are big eater so it is
catering services. That is Chinese, Malay, Indian and other. We have variety food to
1) Product
Indian and others) have their own traditional foods. The menu will be focused on the
different type of foods in the various races, it is including Spice in Malay flavour (Nasi
Perani, Ayam Goreng, Rendang, Ketupat Sotong, Satay, dessert is Akar and others),
Chinese flavour (Fries Noodles and Bee Hoon, Tou Fu, Lemon Chicken, Fishball, Fried
Fish Chips and dessert is Baked Egg Tart), Indian flavour (Tandoori, Rajma, Chapati,
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Briyanis and dessert is pappadams). Another menu will be focused on snack servings
(Black Forest cake, Tiramitsu, Fruits Cake, White Choc Chips Cookies, Hazelnut
Beverages will also be a part of the menu, customer will be provided with choices
on fresh fruit juices or soft drinks. The beverages will be free of charge and will be
treated as an extra service for the customers. In the other way of those alcohol drinks
will be charged in every dozen base. The ingredients will be fresh and will be checked by
the F&B (Food & Beverages) expertise every morning. These nice arrangements of hot
food and even cold beverages would be prepared just prior to the delivery.
2) Price
view the standard of living of the consumers and their ability to purchase. In catering
business will be dealing with 3 major races the local Malaysians, Indians and the
Chinese. Each of them will be offered with different variety of foods and beverages
which comes in different price ranges. The unique catering service will be perfect for
family gatherings and receptions. Perhaps you would enjoy relaxing dinner with some
close friends or maybe you have an important business client to impress. The prices
may differ on the basis of family feasts, business gatherings, marriages etc.
Company will divide the price per serving according to the number of customers
we get to serve. Like now we have ranged our price in the following basis:-
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This price limit is under the limit for 10 people. If there is an order for 12 or 15
people the price the customer needs to pay would be for 20 people. The service will also
be serving snacks which will include tea, coffee, chips, croissants and other light dishes
for catering service the place that is required is which is easily accessible to the general
consumers. They should be able to locate easily without much difficulty. This is because
if the catering service is not positioned in a proper and convenient place, it would be
The catering service will be located among the peak areas of ‘Bintang Walk’. It is
very easy to locate this place and we will be able to undertake the orders in a friendly
manner. We will be having just one main branch in Kuala Lumpur city and later have
plans to emerge in more happenings cities of Malaysia. Besides the company will also
have own website which can be viewed at any point of time online in the internet.
Internet being the modern means of communication makes it easier to promote our
Time is another factor which needs to be taken care of. In case of the catering
service will not be following any delivery channels. The company will deliver service
directly to the customers. It will emphasize on time- saving aspects as we believe that
the more time- consuming work we handle for our clients, the easier its going to be for
us to close the sale. Speed and convenience of place of time for the customer are
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4) Promotion
service firm is launched to market now. The advertisement will set on afternoon (“Relax
Housewife”) to target housewife and night (“drama”) to target family and working adults.
Even using a TV advertisement is expensive, but it is the most effective way to give
will be easier to target the areas which company is going to emphasis on. In the
household magazine like Klue, “Food Yummy” magazine and others will attract people
who are looking for entertainment or food. For the catering service plan, it is going to
advertise on Kuala Lumpur only. But it should be cover on three main languages
The promotion like cash discount, special combo set and vouncher are going to
maintain the relationship with customers. The promotion should emphasis on exist
customers, send new manu and voucher for them, it gain words of mouth by these
customer groups. The company website is going to enlarge the customer group and
mostly focus on young adults or peoples who are middle upper income level. Website
design will reduce the budget of promotion costand provide customer a primary idea
Since the catering venues are mostly decorated by flower, brouchers can be
distributed by the florist supplier of company. The florist can make a introduction to their
customer about this catering service. This is not only a benefit for us but also an
advantage for the florist to get more orders from the catering service company.
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5) People
The catering service will try to keep close relations with the customers. The
customers will be greeted in a friendly manner and the orders will be accepted and
completed at the right time. Delivery service will be handled properly in order to avoid
any complaints from customers. The staffs will be well trained and are good with
handling customers. There will have managers, assistant, chefs, helpers and other
workers who will be well trained and will be motivated by experts in order to perform their
tasks in the best way. It will be having a certain procedure to recruit the staff members in
order into our company. Firstly, each and every staff has to go through an aptitude test
which will be conducted by us in order for us to have knowledge about their personal
abilities, skills and interests. This will be quite helpful to select specialized staff. We will
be selecting the employees on the basis of their potential and determination in the work
and interest of the company. The selection procedures will be more on the basis of
qualitative factor rather than quantitative as we believe that as long as the employees
are the best out of the lots… the number does not matter. The company will give higher
preference to those having qualified degree in catering service from well recognized
universities.
After the best employees have been selected, these employees have to undergo
training in order to get them well accustomed with the jobs they are needed to perform.
Usually this training will be for 1month or 2 month depending on their ability to learn. The
staff members will be there to motivate these new employees so that they feel
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6) Physical Evidence
In the catering service, it is required to have a solid physical evidence to let customer
have interest and confidence on the services. In catering service industry they use to
create and maintain physical evidence, we will mainly concern on the vehicles,
equipments, staff’s grooming, clothing and others tangible evidence. The vehicle must
be in-time to deliver foods. The company needs to be hygienic thus should check and
clean up the vehicle everyday to give customer a fresh look and even the first image to
The staff’s grooming will also be taken into consideration when different catering
will be held. For example, on a kid’s birthday party, the waiters can be dressed as a
clown or funny cartoon characters. It will reflect the positive remarks from customers.
Equipments (like trays, dishes, forks, spoons and others) must be clean and spotless.
Sanitary fixtures are important for food industry, it will be an energetically to give trust
7) Process
so that will be able to provide better services to the customers. The staff will be made to
follow a certain way to serve the guests for food. In case of buffet service, the customers
may have a chance to choose the food by themselves. If case if any help is required, few
waiters will also be provided. It will be concentrating in providing faster and satisfying
service so that the customers feel it worth it to choose our catering service. All the
complaints will also be taken so that we will be able to improve on our services for the
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7.0 IMPLEMENTATION AND CONTROL OF THE MARKETING PLAN
desired objectives. Implementation can be defined as the specific steps taken when
attempting to reach a specific goal. For our market plan the implementation starts with
the structure of the organization which defines the command chain which is crucial and
needs to be followed.
It needs to clearly define positions of the staff and their responsibilities and to whom
they should report to. The outline or structure is illustrated in APPENDIX 1. The chain of
department cannot work solely on its own hence termed as interrelated and
interdependent.
The structure starts with the managing director at the top and overlooks the
functioning of the whole business unit. Under the managing director there are four
managers who are solely responsible for one function each; Marketing, Finance, Sales
and Service.
The marketing manager has officers under him/her and is responsible for setting
goals that will be incorporated into the company’s overall objectives. The marketing
manager works with the officers in achieving the day to day marketing objectives such
department cover all marketing aspects related to the service.The finance department
houses the chief accountant and clerks who are responsible for recording, forecasting,
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purchasing, bookkeeping and in other words responsible for all financial aspects of the
business.
The Sales department consists of the manager and sales personnel; these groups of
individuals are mainly responsible for achieving the targeted sales forecast and do the
job of creating these sales by delivering the service to the final consumers. Their tasks
entail working with the marketing department and trying to achieve the objectives
The service department is the core of the whole organization due to the kind of
service the business offers. The manager is responsible for the service crew, the chefs
and cleaners. The service crew refers to the crew that does the deliver of the goods to
the final customers that is waiters, drivers and all other personnel responsible for this
task. Should any mishap occur the managing director and the managers have the sole
powers to deviate from the set direction and try to find a new way to achieve the
decision by one department will affect the functionality of all the other departments.
business objective. The view of control includes all actions, including, but not limiting to,
and accountabilities, monitoring and reporting activity, and establishing review or audit
right direction toward the right goal. Control in this kind of business will include the
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A customer appraisal analysis; this is done in order to find out whether the
customers expectations were met and if there is any room for improvement that can be
implemented in the future. By doing this the managers will have an idea of whether they
delivered the promised service or what they promised to deliver and hence make
Employee appraisal; firms are moving towards a new era of worker empowered
organizations hence appraisal being an important step in achieving that goal. Employees
are known as boundary spanners they interact with the world outside and in any case of
poor service deliverance it would reflect on the business organization rather than the
employee hence making appraisal crucial. Things to appraise include need for training,
motivation, promotion and others. Appraisal will also act as a medium of feedback and
ideas from employees therefore helping the firm in achieving its goals.
Review of financial statements; a yearly review of the financial statement will give
out a clear picture of how the company is performing and whether it is achieving is profit
Time to time SWOT analysis; the environment for businesses is ever changing
and as always gives rise to strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. It is crucial
to identify the business environment as it might help the company assess any threats
and adopt a protective strategy in avoiding or clashing with it. Like wise strengths and
Implementation and control of the plan is the most crucial point as a plan has no
cause if it can not be implemented and for it to survive its control is essential.
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8.0 CONCLUSION
The marketing plan of “Sweet n Spicy Catering Service” is prepared to the future
three years. It must be concerned on every steps and actions to be taken in the first
year. “A good plan will bring the success nearer.” In the catering service, the company
was did a forcasting plan on a total number of a household area in Kuala Lumpur. It is
going to receive a small sum of profit in the first year, but the improvement that the
company been done will get a fruitful result in the next two years.
didn’t match up what the customer wants and needs. That is why the company is
emphasis on delicious food, clean environment, good services and the reasonable
prices. Based on these motives, “Sweet n Spicy Catering Service” will provide the best
attitude and the equipment. The material of food is bought from market everyday, it is
100% fresh and home made dishes are going to catch every tongue. There is one
principle of the company to make customer trust the service --- Keep Hygiene. Every of
the employees need to care on the hygiene themselves. For example, the chef must
Futhermore, the other internal department is also playing an important role in the
company. They have responsible to commit and improve their job in different areas. The
sales department achieve sale target, the marketing department achieve objective and
creating events. The control and implement will be leading the company towards the
successful future. In the three years plan, it is a crucial to have an efficient management.
The capital of the company in the first year is limited, it cause the promotion
strategies need to be running in low investment. Most of the capital is mainly used as set
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up cost. The expenses to new decoration, new vehicle, new kitchen equiment and other
are costly in the first year. The company made less profit in the 1st year. The
maintanence will be on 2nd year, it is not going to cost much. That will be only spend on
maintain the performance of vehicle and the kitchen facilities. Continue towards to 3 rd
year, it will be going to reach the break-even point if the businesses go smoothly by
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9.0 REFERENCES
1. Emirex Catering Services Sdn Bhd. 2004, ‘The Menu’, online, date accessed
http:www.emirexcatering.com
mukims population and housing census 2000’ , online, date accessed 7th
http://www.statistics.gov.my/English/news/laamukim.htm
3. McDonald M and Morris, P,(2000) The Marketing Plan, a pictorial guide for
http://www.productmarketing.com/productmarketing/topics/02/0208ds.asp
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10.0 APPENDICIES: FINANCIAL ANALYSIS
APPENDIX 1
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APPENDIX 2
Total Number of Households in the target market (A) 143700 143700 143700
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APPENDIX 3
Less Expenses:
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APPENDIX 4
The report on the Population Distribution By Local Authority Areas and Mukims is
the second report released based on the computer processing of all individual
census forms. This report consists of basic information such as age, sex, ethnic
group as well as number of households and living quarters at the administrative
district, local authority area and mukim level. The figures given in this report
have not been adjusted for under enumeration.
2. In total, there were 148 local authorities at the time of the 2000 Census and
consisted of 3 City Halls, 3 City Councils, 25 Municipal Councils, 112 District
Councils, 2 Town Boards, 1 Rural District Council, 1 Development Board and
1 Local Authority.
3. Among the City Halls, Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur had the highest
population with 1,305,792 persons followed by Dewan Bandaraya Kota
Kinabalu (355,435 persons) and Dewan Bandaraya Kuching Utara (152,475
persons).
4. At City Council level, Majlis Bandaraya Ipoh had the highest population
(529,906 persons) followed by Majlis Bandaraya Johor Bahru (404,780
persons) and Majlis Bandaraya Kuching Selatan (163,134 persons).
5. Besides that, the Municipal Councils that had the largest population counts
were Majlis Perbandaran (MP) Seberang Perai (655,711 persons), MP Pulau
Pinang (575,498 persons), MP Klang (562,239 persons), MP Kajang (506,526
persons), MP Ampang Jaya (478,613 persons), MP Subang Jaya (437,121
persons) and MP Petaling Jaya (432,619 persons).
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(iv) Population distribution by age group
9. The percentage of population in the young age group that is 0-14 years was
the lowest in MP Pulau Pinang Timur Laut (21.4%) followed by MP Petaling
Jaya (25.2%) and Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (26.1%).
10. On the other hand, the percentage of population aged 65 years and over was
highest for MD Lenggong (9.3%), MD Perak Tengah and Kinta Selatan (8.2%
each); all situated in the state of Perak.
11. The highest sex ratio was recorded in MD Kinabatangan where there were
135 males over every 100 females followed by MD Seremban (121) and MD
Cameron Highlands (116).
12. Conversely, the lowest sex ratio was in MD Kuala Pilah where there were 92
males over every 100 females followed by MD Kubang Pasu and MP Pulau
Pinang Timur Laut (that is 93 males for every 100 females respectively).
13. The 2000 Census also showed that the total number of households was
highest in DB Kuala Lumpur that is 308,006 households follwed by MB Ipoh
(127,381), MP Klang (118,078), MP Ampang Jaya (111, 854), MP Kajang
(108,842) and MP Pulau Pinang Timur Laut (100,711).
14. Overall, the highest number of living quarters was recorded for DB Kuala
Lumpur that is 354,731 units, followed by MB Ipoh (153,509), MP Pulau
Pinang Timur Laut (131,568), MP Kajang (127,680) and MP Klang (123,362).
(viii) Mukim
15. The mukim with the highest population was Mukim Ulu Kinta (Kinta District,
Perak) that is with 533,027 persons followed by Mukim Damansara in
Petaling District, Selangor (453,420 persons), Mukim Plentong in Johor Bahru
District, Johor (349,390 persons) and Mukim Kuala Kuantan in Kuantan
District, Pahang (269,721 persons).
Conclusion
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