KUALA LUMPUR: Just over 6,000 Malaysians registered with the e-Konsular system in 2025 even though hundreds of thousands travelled overseas, foreign minister Mohamad Hasan said today.
He said the low registration rate made it difficult for his ministry to identify and contact Malaysians about possible emergencies in the countries they visit.
Mohamad said Malaysians should provide his ministry with their travel information, location and contact numbers to allow the ministry to identify them and channel aid where necessary.
"Hundreds of thousands of Malaysians left the country, but just over 6,000 people registered with e-Konsular. People only pressure the government once things happen.
"How are we to contact them if we do not know where they are?" he said during a question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat.
Mohamad said e-Konsular functioned as an information and data hub that helped the ministry deal with Malaysians overseas, especially in matters requiring urgent action.
"Register immediately. Don't wait until something happens before scrambling to act. We don't want things to descend into chaos," he said.
Mohamad was responding to a supplementary question from Isam Isa (BN-Tampin) about what the government was doing to increase registration with e-Konsular among Malaysians travelling overseas.
Isam said travel and location information had to be updated to facilitate immediate action, especially for Malaysians participating in high-risk activities such as mountain climbs and expeditions.
On Aug 26, flash floods and landslides hit Nepal's Rasuwa district and the area near its border with Tibet after heavy rain.
A total of 55 Malaysians were initially reported missing. One was later found safe and returned home on Oct 2, leaving 54 still unaccounted for.