KNOWLEDGE-BASED WORKFORCE... IS THE TOOL OF EFFICIENT URBAN GOVERNANCE?

It is often said that without learning there will be no wisdom, and without wisdom we will always be trapped in the prison of our past and become victims of a continuously changing future. In this environment of rapid and unprecedented change, what is valid at one time may become invalid in another time. Similarly, what is relevant in one context may be irrelevant in another context. As we move to the information age, information and knowledge have become important organisational resources. Knowledge is now recognised as the driver of productivity and economic growth. With knowledge becoming the unlimited and fundamental input for success, people are expected to increasingly work with ideas and concepts. As purveyors of actions and knowledge their important contributions are intelligence, talents and mental creativity. Organisational effectiveness will thus be increasingly dependent on its ability to attract, utilise and retain people with talent and knowledge.

The light of this development, knowledge-based workforce forms the ultimate capabilities required by the public service. Knowledge-based workforce refers to result–driven, focused, productive, creative and innovative team. It is thus pertinent for public service leaders to ensure that the culture for continuous learning is pervasive in their respective organisations and become instinctive and natural among the officials.The culture for learning would also encourage the public service to be more open to external views and should not be afraid to learn from international experts, think–tanks as well as the community, since we have no monopoly to wisdom. Being open to disagreements and criticisms are virtues that should also be encouraged.In the effort to attract and retain people with talent and knowledge. The new systems should be devised to attract the best citizens and the best brains to join the civil service. This would require flexibility in terms of requirement at different levels of entry points into the service. This approach we believe will help to re-brand the Public Service as the Employer of Choice attracting the best talent into the civil service. We do hope the proposal is still being actively pursued by the relevant agencies. Another approach to develop the knowledge-based workforce is through mentoring and continuous training. In grooming good leaders, it is significant that they learn to lead from relationship with senior leaders who have served as coaches, mentors, teachers, and above all, good examples. In addition, young leaders more often than not learn to lead far more from tacit rather than from cognitive knowledge – as apprentices of “masters”.

EFFICIENT URBAN GOVERNANCE.... IS THE NEW WAY OF MALAYSIA PUBLIC SERVICE???

Leadership is indeed a critical component of good public governance. By governance, we mean the way in which the underlying values of a nation are articulated and institutionalised. It is these values that will guide the actions of public officials throughout the system and they must be embedded in culture. The question is how we actualize these values in the public service. The primary function of public service is to translate the national vision into tangible outcomes. The Malaysian Public Service has been successful in their efforts to drive national development and nation building as well as enhancing and upgrading capacity and capabilities. Within a short period of five decades, we have managed not only to build our nation, but set our foothold in the global arena. These developments congruent towards a maturing society and a maturing nation. The challenges of the 21st century however, is to steer the nation into a new dimension both locally and globally.

It is alarming to note that despite the numerous measures undertaken to improve the public service delivery, a recent survey by the Malaysian Integrity Institute, indicates that the public’s impression of public service delivery is even lower than its perception on corruption. In this context, we believe there is a need for the profiling of the public service image. The public service must look at its role with a new pair of eyes and through a fresh lens to ensure it rises to the challenges put before Malaysia with unsullied solutions. By culture for excellence, we mean setting high standards of performance with tangible goals and realistic plans to achieve them. This would require a change from an input-oriented practice to outcome-based approaches. The outcome-based approach provides transparency, as such, the progress of projects and programmes are more easily monitored towards the prescribed goals. The public also has the opportunity to see its value for money. The implementation of this approach is anticipated to improve performance and public accountability. Demanding a high standard of performance by itself however, is inadequate if there is no follow-through and follow-up action. We are often praised for having the best plans, unfortunately often lacking in the drive and commitment in its implementation and completion.

Attaining seamless service delivery is still one of the major problems confronting the public service today. World class public service delivery can only be achieved through a high level of inter-agency collaboration. Poor coordination amongst public sector agencies has resulted in overlapping of roles and functions as well as wastages in terms of time and resources. The gap between the centre and frontline service delivery needs to be narrowed. The public service agencies must no longer see themselves in isolation but rather as an integrated part of ‘one government, many agencies, and one delivery’. In this context, leadership in the public service must be able to work across organisational boundaries and bring together the various agencies to attain synergy in public service delivery.

As the society gets more developed, more educated and more exposed, its citizens become more aware of their rights and privileges. Furthermore, the globalised ideas of openness and participation raised the expectations of ordinary citizens to be more involved in the decision making process that has an impact on them. Today, citizens expect to be consulted as part and parcel of the policy-making process. This is in line with the concept of good governance which espouses the need to understand and engage the public and stakeholders towards the common good of the society. Whilst this may be departure from the conventional ways, however, partnerships, mutual consultations and participation should be the mainstay and modus operandi of the new work culture. No matter how well the public service has performed in the past, we can never rest on our laurels and bask in the glory of our past successes. If we do, we are at risk of being overtaken by others in this world of intense competition. We must always be ‘one step ahead’ if we are to survive and thrive in this highly competitive global environment. Therefore, we must continuously strive for high standards of performance.

DID MALAYSIA IMPROVES RANKING ON THE EASE OF DOING BUSINESS BY ENCHANCING IN EFFICIENCY URBAN GOVERNANCE?

Malaysia improved four ranks to 20th in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Survey 2009, from 24th in 2008 and 25th in 2007. Malaysia has improved in its ranking throughout the 3 years, considering that the total number of countries being ranked has increased to 181 in 2009 from 178 in 2008 and 175 in 2007. Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan, Chief Secretary to the Government and the Co-Chairman of PEMUDAH, the country’s special task force to improve Malaysia’s business competitiveness, said that he was encouraged by Malaysia’s improved ranking in this survey. But stressed that there was much more work to be done if Malaysia is to move into the top 10 in the near future.

PEMUDAH was set up on 7 February 2007, in part as a response to the less than stellar ranking in this survey in the past years. Since its establishment 19 months ago PEMUDAH has succeeded in reducing, if not totally removing, various impediments in the business environment. It worked with the public sector in a number of areas, and was able to among others:
· Reduce the time taken for clearance of exports undertaken to facilitate trade;
· Reduce the time taken for property registration through improvement of processes and enabling on line applications for property registration;
· Ease and refine tax matters;
· Reduce time and costs as well as increase the rate of recovery in closing a business in Malaysia; and
· facilitate e-payment;
· established one-stop centre to expedite incorporation of companies; and
· improve the processes for employing expatriates and skilled workers;

The World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Survey 2009 is the sixth in a series of annual reports co-published by the World Bank and the International Financial Cooperation. The report investigates the regulations that enhance business activities and those that constrain them. Rankings on the ease of doing business do not tell the whole story about an economy's business environment. The rankings also do not account for all factors important for doing business for example, macroeconomic conditions, infrastructure, workforce skills or security. But improvement in an economy's ranking does indicate that its Government is creating a regulatory environment conducive to operating a business.

Regulations affecting ten areas of daily business are measured:

· Starting a business;
· Dealing with permits;
· Employing workers;
· Registering property;
· Getting credit;
· Protecting investors;
· Paying taxes;
· Trading across borders;
· Enforcing contracts; and
· Closing a business.

Malaysia improved its rankings in 4 of the 10 indicators, namely:

· Getting credit , to 1 in 2009 from 3 in 2008;
· Dealing with construction permits, to 104 in 2009 from 105 in 2008;
· Paying taxes, to 21 in 2009 from 56 in 2008;
· Enforcing contracts, to 59 in 2009 from 63 in 2008.

Sidek reassured that PEMUDAH would continue with the agenda of improving the quality of service at all levels, especially that of local government. PEMUDAH will continue to promote a conducive environment for doing business in the country through the following measures:

· streamlining and speeding up Government Agencies and Departments’ processes;
· encouraging on-line applications;
· enhancing transparency and accountability of the Public Sector; and
· continuous monitoring of initiatives already undertaken.

MALAYSIA-TOWARDS GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS’ THIRD INDUSTRIAL MASTER PLAN (IMP3 2006-2020)

18 -19 th NOVEMBER 2008 - INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SOCIAL, DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES 2008

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON
SOCIAL, DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES 2008
“Global Change and Transforming Spaces”
18-19th November 2008

Contemporary global forces have devastating impact on local spaces. The intensification of the capitalistic forces, couched with market ideological impetus has transformed spaces in both the developed and developing world. These forces have created fragmented and unequal spaces and can be observed in several spheres: environment, economy, social, cultural, political and discourse. By bringing together scholars from various disciplines to deliberate these issues at the global, regional and local level, this conference hopes to act as a multidisciplinary platform for intellectual and policy discourse as well as a ground for regional networking comprising academics, researchers, policy and decision makers, government officials and non- governmental organizations.

How these cascading global forces impinge on the local spaces in various spheres of life becomes a critical issue that warrants further inquiry? How different countries strategize, form alliance and situate in this globalizing world becomes a key question? How do micro-spaces and marginal spaces and actors respond to this avalanche? By bringing together scholars from various disciplines to deliberate these issues at the global, regional and local level, this conference hopes to act as a multidisciplinary platform for intellectual and policy discourse as well as a ground for regional networking comprising academics, researchers, policy and decision makers, government officials and non-governmental organizations.

THE IMPLEMENTATION OF E-GOVERNMENT IN LOCAL AUTHORITIES TOWARDS ENHANCING URBAN GOVERNANCE EFFICIENCY


BY
AZMIZAM BIN ABDUL RASHID
PROF. MADYA DR HAMZAH BIN JUSOH
DR JALALUDDIN BIN ABDUL MALEK

ABSTRACT

Over the past decade many governments have conceived and implemented programmes intended to launch the government into the digital realm. The Electronic Government (E-Government) initiative in Malaysia was launched to lead the country into the Information Age. It has improved both how the government operates internally as well as how it deliver services to the people of Malaysia. It seeks to improve the convenience, accessibility and quality of interactions with citizens and businesses; simultaneously, it will improve information flows and processes within government to improve the speed and quality of policy development, coordination and enforcement. The vision of E-Government is a vision for government and businesses people working together for the benefit of Malaysia and all of its citizens. The proposed of this paper to study the implementation of E-Government in Local Authorities in order to enhance effectiveness and efficiency in deliver services. Majlis Perbandaran Subang Jaya (MPSJ) has been chosen in the study. The focus of study is how MPSJ implement the E-Government not only transparency and accountability, but also creates an opportunity for community to assess MPSJ performance and delivery of services and promises. An efficient public service is a key factor in ensuring a conducive environment to attract private investment.

17th-18th NOVEMBER 2008 - IKMAS SHORT COURSE

GLOBALIZATION AND STATE AUTONOMY

17-18 NOVERMBER 2008

IKMAS MEETING ROMM

Today I am attending a short course organised by IKMAS with a theme GLOBALIZATION AND STATE AUTONOMY. This course intends to examine the interaction between various aspects of globalization and Malaysian government policies in a number of areas or sectors. It will first provide a brief overview of globalization debates, particularly on the issue of whether states have autonomy and policy space under globalization. With that as the introductory background, the course will go into details on the interaction between globalization processes at various stages of Malaysian development with the evolution of the Malaysian state and also on the background for the Look East Policy and its relevance (or lack of) today for Malaysia. It will also discuss how globalization interacts with policies on trade and investment, income distribution and poverty eradication, governance and competitiveness of small and medium enterprises, and migrant labour flows. It will then examine how globalization impacts upon Islamization and Islamist politics, as well as the issues of national identity. The course, facilitated by a multidisciplinary team of IKMAS fellows, adopts an essentially historical approach, in most cases, from the 1970s to the present. The course builds on earlier courses on discourses on globalization provided by IKMAS in the past. Participants interested in attending the course should also read publications by IKMAS fellows on the subject as well as other publications on globalization .

Below a list of paper presented by various speakers such as.

• Developmentalist State in Malaysia: Its Origins, Nature, and Contemporary Transformation by Prof. Dato’ Dr. Abdul Rahman Embong

• The Look East Policy, The Asian Crisis, and State Autonomy by Prof. Dr. Lee Poh Ping

• Trade Liberalization and National Autonomy: Malaysia’s Experience atthe Multilateral and Bilateral Levels by Prof. Dr. Tham Siew Yean

• Cross Border Migration and State Policy in Malaysia by Prof. Dr. Azizah Kassim

• Poverty Eradication, Development, and Policy Space in Malaysia by Prof. Dr. Ragayah Haji Mat Zin

• Globalization and Governance of Small and Medium Enterprises by Prof. Madya Dr. Faridah Shahadan

• Globalization, Islamic Resurgence, and State Autonomy: The Response of the Malaysian State to ‘Islamic Globalization’ by Prof. Norani Othman

• Situating Nationhood in a Globalized World Culture by Dr. Helen Ting

Before we attended the above course we have to read a few books in order to understand more the subject matter. More over it will help our a roundtable discussion at the end of this course. The list of books that we required to study are :

 Ishak Shari (editor Abdul Rahman Embong). 2008. Pembangunan: Mengejar Impian atau Harapan (Himpunan Esei Ishak Shari): Kuala Lumpur: DBP. (Baca khususnya Bahagian 1, Bab 1).

 Ragayah Haji Mat Zin, Medhi Krongkaew (eds), 2008. Income Distribution and Sustainable Economic Development in East Asia: A Comparative Analysis. Bangi: Penerbit UKM. (Boleh didapati di IKMAS, RM50.00)

 Tham Siew Yean, Lee Poh Ping, Norani Othman (eds), 2008. Community in ASEAN: Ideas and Practices. Bangi: Penerbit UKM. (Boleh didapati di IKMAS, RM30.00) Helen Ting, 2008, 'Social Construction of Nation - A Theoretical Exploration', Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, 14:3, 453-482.

 Azizah Kassim, 2007, Development and international migration in Malaysia: Patterns, policy and human rights. In Abdul Rahman Embong (ed.) Social Science and Malaysian National Development. Persatuan Sains Sosial Malaysia, Ampang Press Sdn Bhd. Kuala Lumpur, pp.107-147.

 Messina A, & Lehav, G. 2006, The Migration Reader: Exploring Politics and Policies. Lynne Ryner Publisher, London.

 Frank J. Lechner & John Boli, 2005, World Culture - Origins and Consequences, Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.

 Azizah Kassim, 2005, Security and social implications of cross-national migration in Malaysia. In Mohamed Jawhar Hassan (ed.), Pacifying The Pacific, Confronting The Challenges. Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, pp. 259 –288.

 Abdul Rahman Embong (ed.), 2004. Globalisation, Culture & Inequalities: In Honour of Ishak Shari, Penerbit UKM, (Boleh didapati di IKMAS, RM60.00 untuk kulit nipis dan RM100.00 untuk kulit tebal).

 Cornelius W.A, et al, 2004, Controlling Immigration: A Global Perspective. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California.

 Brettle, & Hollifield J.F, 2000, Migration Theory: Talking Across Disciplines. Rutledge, New York.

 Held, David (et al), 1999, Global Transformations: Politics, Economics and Culture. Stanford: Stanford University Press.

 Meyer, John W. et al., 1997, 'World Society and the Nation-State', American Journal of Sociology, 103:1, 144-81.

EFFICIENCY IN URBAN GOVERNANCE...MYTH OR REALITY?

Of late we are seeing a movement to make local government more efficient. While at first glance this seems like a logical idea to better local government, there are many questions that need to be answered before embarking on such an endeavor and several concerns and cautions that need to be recognized. Asking the right questions, seeking the right information, using realistic performance criteria, and considering all possible outcomes are essential to ensure the efforts of the local governmental body do not end up as nothing more than a report collecting dust on a shelf or, worse yet, the results of the efforts prove not only disappointing but may even worsen the situation. One of the most common comments heard when local governments begin considering efficiency efforts is “We need to run our county/city/village like a business!” While on the surface this would appear to be a positive idea, there are issues that must be considered before embarking on such a quest.

First, government provides services that cannot be offered in a manner similar to a for profit business. If all government services could be provided by private business at a profit, private business would certainly be providing those services. The fact that most government services cannot be provided in a profitable or even self sustaining manner means that government cannot be run like a business. All one has to do is try to envision police or fire departments being operated in a for-profit business manner to see why this concept is unworkable.

Second, private businesses are not subject to the public scrutiny, regulations, or management options that local governments are. A business can write off a group of difficult customers; government cannot. All citizens, no matter how disagreeable or problematic are entitled to services.

Third, government does not have a monopoly on inefficiency. Businesses have the ability to cover mistakes and inefficiencies while increasing prices to cover the costs of mistakes. Local government does not have this luxury as everything it does is subject to public scrutiny.

15th NOVEMBER 2008 ZULAZLIN JOINED 7th CONVOCATION OF ABIM KINDERGARTEN DESA SAUJANA AT COMMUNITY HALL PRECINT 16 PUTRAJAYA

MUSLIM WORLD, GOVERNANCE AND GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS

The Muslim world is rich in human capital as well as physical resources and has immense potential for growth, progress and prosperity. We constitute one-fifth of humanity and our people are intelligent, industrious and enterprising. Nature has blessed us with vast natural resources which include 70% of the world's hydrocarbon reserves. The Muslim world is spread over a vast geographical expanse extending from Morocco to Indonesia and has a rich diversity of races, languages, cultures and people. Counter-pointing the richness and diversity of our resource base is an economic performance which is not commensurate with our true potential. There is no doubt that some of the Muslim countries have made impressive progress. However, a vast majority of Muslims live in poverty and backwardness. Nearly 39% of the world's Muslim population lives below the poverty line. We make up 19% of the world's population but only 6% of its income. Our share in global trade is barely 7 - 8%, while only 13% of our total trade is amongst us. No Muslim nation is among the group of developed industrialized countries.

Instead of breaking into a litany of noble intents and declarations, which is a customary way of starting such a speech, we have deliberately chosen to go straight to facts and figures which bring into sharp relief the true dilemmas and challenges facing us. Our sole objective here is to set in motion a train of thought that helps us identify the root-causes of our malaise. We in the Muslim world need to look inwards, get into a mode of self-analysis, identify our strengths and weaknesses and chart a clear and well-defined course of action. First of all, we should be very clear about the kind of world that we live in today. The world of today is radically and profoundly different from the world of yesterday. We are living in an age of globalisation where no nation can afford to live in isolation. We have, therefore, to begin our quest for economic revival by identifying the challenges and opportunities that the current global environment presents.

The new world order is characterized by economic integration, technological advancement, predominance of knowledge economy, and diffusion of democratic ideas. Broadly speaking, this process has brought about three fundamental changes. Firstly, a new governance paradigm is emerging whereby the private sector is leading the process of economic growth and governments are assuming the role of policy-maker, facilitator, regulator and enabler. Secondly, supra- national institutions are laying the rules of the game and nation-states. are called upon to operate within that framework. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, buoyant expansion of global trade and capital flows as well as freer exchange of ideas and technology across the world provide vast opportunities for growth but at the same time pose serious challenges in terms of achieving better governance, higher efficiency and greater competitiveness.

This is the kind of global environment in which we in the Muslim world have to position ourselves in our pursuit of economic resurgence. The sooner we adjust to the ground realities of the new global order, the brighter our prospects of success would be. The way forward in this highly competitive and inter-dependent world is through improved governance and reform within individual Muslim states on the one hand and by exploring new avenues of mutual cooperation based on commonality of interest on the other. The second biggest challenge facing the Muslim world is on account of insecurity emanating from disunity and dissentions within our own ranks. Such conflicts and disputes are not only sapping our energies and resources but also undermining our prospects of meaningful cooperation. Within Muslim countries, vertical divisions by way of social inequities are nursing a sense of deprivation, while horizontal cleavages along ethnic, tribal and linguistic lines are a source of unrest. There is a need for unity within and amongst ourselves in order to move forward and harness our economic potential.

The growing divide between the Muslim world and the West, wrongly projected by some as a clash of civilizations, is another important challenge facing us. Public opinion in the western world is gripped by misperceptions about our faith. Meanwhile, Muslims in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, Lebanon and Kashmir continue to face insecurity, death and destruction. Such is the nature and magnitude of the challenges facing the Muslim world in recent times. The most important response required of us at this critical juncture is to project the true spirit of the Islamic faith and to remove the cobwebs of prejudice and misperceptions which hang around it. Islam as a way of life enshrines the values of moderation, tolerance, justice and interfaith harmony.

In conclusion, the Muslim world is faced with serious and multiple challenges. A lot of progress has been made in many areas but a lot more needs to be done. It requires clarity of thought, will to change, and determined and concerted action by all of us individually and collectively. It is a difficult and arduous journey. It is a constant and unrelenting struggle. The Muslim world, with its rich resources, vibrant energies and unflagging determination, will overcome these challenges and open new avenues of progress and prosperity not only for Muslims but for entire humanity. Islam promises universal peace, progress and prosperity and so should our endeavours aim at and contribute to make a better world for all mankind.

14th NOVERMBER 2008 SEMINAR ON LAND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, UNIVERSITI PUTRA MALAYSIA

Today I attended seminar Seminar on Land Resource Management organised by Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) cooperation with University of Cambridge. The seminar is conjuction with 10 years annivesary of Master of Science in Land Resource Management (Ms LARM). The purpose of seminar is concerns with sustainable land use that worried everyone because of the limited land resources for food production and the increased trend towards urbanization. Accelerated land degradation and limiting water resources further aggravates the situation. As land belongs to the past, present and future generations, it is not only a useful and tradable commodity but also a valuable natural resource that must be conserved and protected for the common good of all. Unconstrained land developments have an impact on the climate, environment and public safety. Thus, the need to increase knowledge and appreciation on soil and land matters among the professionals involved with land development becomes very urgent.

Background

MS LARM offered by the Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia in collaboration with The University of Cambridge since May 1997 , is part of a conscious effort to fulfill this need. This programme is the only one of its kind in Southeast Asia. The programme covers the theory, methodology and current practices in managing land resources, particularly in the tropical region. At the end of the programme, students would have the fundamental knowledge and understanding of soil science and land resource as a tool to solve issues related to land.

The programme is offered to candidates with working experience from within the country and abroad. The curriculum is specially designed for government and private sector employees at the professional and managerial level in ministries, departments, agencies and corporations dealing with soil and land-related matters such as land use planning, land development in rural and urban setting, agricultural development, land administration, land economics, soil survey and land evaluation, soil/land quality and environmental monitoring. Though largely based on the Malaysia and Western Europe experiences, the programme will also be suitable and of great benefit to candidates from other countries, particularly those in Asia, the Americas and Africa.

The programme consists of a minimum of 36 credit hours (31 credit hours of compulsory courses plus 5 credit hours of elective courses) to be taken in not less than two (2) semesters or modules plus a mandatory technical trip to UK/Western Europe. The programme does not require preparation of a thesis, nevertheless, candidates will be required to submit a project paper based on their technical trip (SST 5901 Course).

Courses in Module 1: Land Evaluation, Soil and Water Conservation, Land Contamination and Pollution, Land Development and Environment, and Elective Courses.

Courses in Module 2: Sustainable Land Development, Land Use Planning and Management, Land Resource Management and Urban Development, Land Economics and Land Laws Administration, Natural Resource Policy, and Elective Courses.

Elective Courses: GIS for Forest Resource Management, Agroforestry Management, Remote Sensing, Precision Agriculture, Management Information System or other related 5000 series courses as approved by the Programme Coordinator. Technical Trip to U.K./Western Europe:

A two and a half (2 ½) week technical trip to UK and Western Europe (SST 5901) organized by the University of Cambridge and UPM will expose students to balanced land management in accordance with current trends of modernization. The itinerary for the visit differ each year but usually participants will visit England, Holland, Belgium and France. Lectures will be conducted either in the classroom or at the visit sites by the experts in the fields. The course will be completed with a project report on comparative land management between those in England/W. Europe and Malaysia. Individuals who would like to join this technical trip as non-student participants are welcomed. However, being a technical trip, we would prefer participants who are working professionals either in private or government sectors so that they can participate during the lectures and discussions.

Certificate of attendance will be jointly conferred by the University of Cambridge and Universiti Putra Malaysia for each participant including the non-student participant upon successful completion of this technical trip. The fees for non-student participant for this technical trip is RM 16,000.00 which will cover lodging, visits and lectures, breakfast plus one meal per day, and inclusive of airfare K.L. – London – K.L. The fees for the whole MS LARM programme is RM 25,000.00 inclusive of the Technical Trip to England and W. Europe (SST 5901 course) which covers everything mentioned above except the airfare K.L. – London – K.L.

Entrance requirements for the programme are as set by the UPM Graduate Studies Committee for taught masters degree. For admission, candidates must have a Bachelors degree (Cumulative Grade Point Average: 2.25) in relevant disciplines. For registration and further information please contact:DeanFaculty of AgricultureUniversiti Putra Malaysia43400 UPM SerdangSelangor, MalaysiaTel:(+603) – 8946 6991Fax: (+603) – 8943 3097/ 4419

Today seminar participated with interesting papers such as:

Seminar 1 – ‘Land Law and Policy in Malaysia’ by Prof. Dato’ Dr. Nik Zain Nik Yusoff, UPM

Seminar 2 - ‘Land Resource Management – Public/Private Partnership’ by Dr . Derek Nicholls, University of Cambridge

Seminar 3 - ‘Comparative study on Land Resource Development between UK/ Western Europe and Malaysia’ by LARM students.

WILL THE NEW POLITIC SCENARIO IN MALAYSIA ENCHANCE EFFICIENT URBAN GOVERNANCE?

Since the advent of New Public Management (NPM), public service innovations and policy transfers have become increasingly popular around the world as a strategy for improving governance and scaling up service quality. The Malaysian government has also shown considerable interests in policy learning and consequently introduced important innovations and reforms akin to those introduced in other contexts. This major innovations and changes that the Malaysian public service has witnessed since the early 1980sand comments on their impact. Although public service innovations and reforms have been quite comprehensive and generally, viewed favourably, they have so far produced positive but yet limited impact. Despite gains in several areas as a result of innovations and changes public governance, Malaysia continues to suffer from a number of problems and challenges including high incidence of corruption, inefficiency, procedural complications/delays in service provision and lack of professionalism.

Though the term ‘governance’ has gained currency fairly recently, attempts at improving governance are by no means new. As the public bureaucracy has generally attracted increasing criticisms for poor performance and failure on its part to meet the rising expectations of the citizenry, government leaders have always sought to address such situations by devising and introducing innovative policy measures. In this respect, they have also shown growing interests in learning from other contexts and in imitating policy models that have apparently produced better results. Thus administrative innovations and policy learning and/or transfers have been a key feature of drives for upgrading the quality of governance in both developed and developing countries. In recent years, such drives seem to have received fresh impetus especially since the advent of the NPM as a model of public sector governance.

The NPM refers to a range of reforms in the public sector aimed at making it more efficient, economic and effective. At the heart of these reforms is the shift from government by control to government by contract, which typically involves the introduction of market logic in the government, changes in organisational structures and redefinition of the government’s roles and functions in the society. Since the NPM has offered better solutions to many of the perennial problems of the public sector, the new model has soon become widely popular. By early 1990s it has assumed a global character and ignited the process of radical transformation of the public service around the world. The countries in the Asia Pacific region are no exceptions to this world-wide trend. During the past decades, political and administrative leaders of this region have demonstrated growing interests in the idea of governance innovation and introduced major reforms in an attempt to streamline the management of the public sector.

Broadly aimed at improving governance, these reforms are largely consistent with those introduced elsewhere, although there are significant variations between individual countries in terms of the levels of implementation and the strategies involved. Consequently, the countries have recorded varied experiences with reforms initiated and results achieved. In Malaysia, the government has introduced a wide range of reforms especially since the 1980s in order to upgrade governance and the quality of services provided to its citizens. The recent reforms represent a major departure in that they are far more significant and comprehensive in both depth and coverage than those introduced in the past. Taken together, they have brought about profound changes in the public service and the way it operates in providing goods and services to the people. The present paper provides an overview of public service reform in Malaysia focussing on aspects of innovation and policy transfer. It begins with the identification of some key factors that have provided the impetus for reforms and innovations. Then it outlines some of the contemporary reform initiatives and assesses their impacts on public governance in general.

THE ROLES OF URBAN GOVERNANCE IN CORRIDOR ECONOMIC REGIONS DEVELOPMENT OF MALAYSIA

In line with Malaysia’s vision of becoming a developed nation by the year 2020, the time has come for us to accelerate the regional development plans that have been put in place. The most important objective of regional development is to achieve a balanced, focused regional growth by spreading economic development to embrace all states and regions. In 2007, we have witnessed the birth of 3 corridor development master plans in Peninsular Malaysia i.e Iskandar Development Region (IRDA), Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER) and East Corridor Economic Region (ECER). The master plans are long term plans and are aimed to unleashed the economic potential of the corridors and enhances the people's quality of life and their income level.This was partly the resultant of the identification of growth conurbations in the National Physical Plan and the call for a more balanced development growth in the country. All three corridors of the Peninsular Malaysia will bring about great change to development and allocation of funds and budget is based on these master plans projects.

This is especially true for the Corridor Economic Regions where tremendous opportunities await. The states of Malaysia are endowed with a wealth of natural resources. Thus far, the nation has benefited tremendously from the optimal use of the oil and gas resources which the region is blessed with. However, the region’s other natural assets have gone relatively untapped. With its beautiful islands, pristine beaches, and unique culture and heritage, the tourism potential in this region remains enormous. Strategically located in Malaysia, facing towards the East Asian countries, the region has an excellent prospect to become the Eastern Gateway to serve the vast Far East markets in terms of trade, resource-based manufacturing, logistics and services.

Agriculture, the mainstay of the region’s economy, is gradually taking on a new face thanks to commercialisation and integration, while human capital development is gradually taking centre stage with the establishment of new tertiary institutions.Hence, the formation of the Corridor Economic Regions Development Council to spearhead the implementation of the plan in the region is a positive move which will fast track the socio-economic development for the states of Malaysia. While the Government will spearhead major infrastructural initiatives in this region, the private sector must play its role to drive the investment in this region, and at the same time cultivate smaller businesses and entrepreneurs.

Potential investors can look forward to an attractive package of incentives, tailor-made especially for this region, with the aim of transforming the Corridor Economic Regions into a cost-competitive and vibrant business hub, poised for future growth. The Government, on its part will ensure that the physical infrastructure will be in place to provide a sound foundation for future growth. The new and enhanced land, sea and air transportation projects as outlined in the Corridor Economic Regions Master Plan will significantly improve the connectivity and linkages between the region and the Kuala Lumpur Conurbation and other demand centres locally and internationally.With the full commitment of both the public and private sectors, the Government is confident that we can all work together to realise the vision of Corridor Economic Regions to become a developed region by the year 2020.

The urban governance plays a leading role in setting the direction, policies and strategies in relation to the Region’s development. It also plays the coordinating role between Government entities in the promotion of trade, investment, tourism and development activities in the Corridor Economic Regions . Among others, the Council acts on behalf of the Government agencies within the Corridor Economic Regions to receive, process and expedite approvals for trade, investment and development in the Corridor Economic Regions . The Council also promotes and stimulates economic and social development in the Region, as well as private sector investment. The urban governance also establishes policies, direction, strategies and initiatives in relation to sustainable development, including environmental protection, management and conservation in the Corridor Economic Regions .

Function of Urban Governance

· Sets direction, policies and strategies in relation to the Corridor Economic Regions 's development

· Coordinates role between Government entities in the promotion of trade, investment, tourism and development activities

· Acts on behalf of Government agencies with the Corridor Economic Regions to receive, process and expedite approvals for trade, investment and development in the Corridor Economic Regions

· Promotes and stimulates economic, social development and private sector investments in the Region

Establishes policies, direction, strategies and initiatives for sustainable development. An Implementation and Coordination Committee (ICC) for each of the state of Malaysia will be established by the Corridor Economic Regions. Among others, the ICCs will identify major or strategic development and investment in the Corridor Economic Regions with regard to their respective states, monitor the status of all related applications and coordinate the roles and activities of relevant government entities to expedite the implementation of such identified major or strategic development and investment in the Corridor Economic Regions .