Malaysia continues to strengthen public service as people's needs evolve, UN forum told
SAMARKAND: Malaysia continues to strengthen its public sector to meet the evolving needs of its people while contributing meaningfully to the Sustainable Development Goals, participants at a United Nations forum here were told.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof (pic) said that under the 10th Malaysia Plan (2011-2015), Malaysia achieved major strides in digitalising public service delivery.
He noted that over 10,000 or 77% of government services were made available online, greatly enhancing access and convenience for citizens.
"We reduced licensing burdens at both federal and local levels by nearly 60% and saved over RM9bil through value management efforts and the abolition of more than 38,000 redundant positions, underscoring our commitment to prudent governance and efficient service delivery,' he said in his speech at the United Nations Public Service Forum 2025 here on Monday (June 23).
Fadillah said one of the key pillars of the civil service's transformation was the adoption in its daily operations of Hemat, an acronym of five core values: Hijrah Tatakelola (Governance Transformation), Empati Rakyat (Empathy for the People), Minda Pekin (Progressive Mindset), Apresiasi Inovasi (Appreciation of Innovation), and Tadbir Urus Telus (Transparent Governance).
"Introduced by the Public Service director-general, Hemat encapsulates the spirit of responsible leadership and a renewed commitment to quality service delivery,' he added.
Complementing this, he said, Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar has launched a comprehensive Public Service Reform Agenda focused on value-based governance, human capital development, organisational strengthening, service delivery and public-private sector collaboration.
"These reforms are supported by an associated and integrated strategy, which ensures that technology and data are embedded in governance transformation,' he said.
Fadillah said Malaysia's commitment to a sustainable future is further demonstrated through the establishment of the Energy Transition and Water Transformation Ministry, which is currently under his purview.
"This reflects the government's strategic decision to align critical public utilities with climate action, technological innovation, and inclusive development.
"The ministry is tasked with transforming our energy and water governance models. It is leading efforts to future-proof the electricity grid, promote renewable energy adoption, particularly solar and hydropower, to enhance energy efficiency, and modernise water resource management.
"It also seeks to ensure that infrastructure planning integrates sustainability and equitable access at its core,' he said.
At the same time, Fadillah stressed that the welfare and professionalism of Malaysian civil servants remain a priority.
"Our newly introduced Public Service Remuneration System, effective December 2024, reflected this focus.
"It embeds performance-based rewards, phased salary adjustments, and clear career pathways aligned with the Madani vision to foster a just, inclusive, and high-performing society,' he added.
The UN Public Service Forum 2025 is ongoing until Wednesday (June 25). – Bernama
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
IAEA seeks access to Iran nuclear sites to ‘account for' highly enriched uranium stockpiles
VIENNA: The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog on Monday called for its inspectors to be able to return to Iran's nuclear sites in a bid to 'account for' its highly enriched uranium stockpiles. He called for a cessation of hostilities. The request follows attacks by Israel and the United States on Iran's nuclear facilities. 'Iran, Israel and the Middle East need peace,' Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), told an emergency meeting of the organisation's board of governors in Vienna. 'For that, we must take a number of steps,' he said. 'First of all, we must return to the negotiating table and for that allow IAEA inspectors -- the guardians on our behalf of the NPT (nuclear non-proliferation treaty) -- to go back to Iran's nuclear sites and account for the stockpiles of uranium, including, most importantly, the 400 kilogrammes enriched to 60 percent.' Grossi said Tehran had sent him a letter on June 13 announcing the implementation of 'special measures to protect nuclear equipment and materials'. 'There needs to be a cessation of hostilities for the necessary safety and security conditions to prevail so that Iran can let IAEA teams into the sites to assess the situation,' he said. Over the weekend, the United States struck three Iranian nuclear sites, joining Israel's bombardments of Iran's nuclear programme. 'Craters are now visible at the Fordo site, Iran's main facility for enriching uranium at 60 percent, indicating the use of ground-penetrating munitions,' he said. He added that 'very significant damage' is expected to have occurred for the US bombing 'given the explosive payload utilised and the extreme vibration-sensitive nature of centrifuges'. 'At this time, no-one including the IAEA, is in a position to have fully assessed the underground damage at Fordo,' he said. The US strikes came after Israel began launching large-scale attacks on Iran on June 13 targeting its missile and nuclear facilities, military leaders and security services, and residential sites. Iran's uranium enrichment has for decades caused tension, with Western powers voicing fears the drive is aimed at making an atomic bomb, a claim denied by Tehran. Israel has maintained ambiguity about its own atomic arsenal, neither officially confirming nor denying it exists, but the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has estimated it has 90 nuclear warheads. European powers have urged Tehran to revive diplomatic efforts with the United States to find a solution in the standoff over its nuclear programme. Iran has said it can only consider diplomacy once Israel halts its bombardment of the Islamic republic.
Borneo Post
2 hours ago
- Borneo Post
Malaysia finalises national technology action plan
Fadillah, who is also the Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation delivers his speech at the United Nations Public Service Forum 2025 today. – Bernama photo SAMARKAND (June 23): Malaysia is currently finalising the National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technology Action Plan which sets a clear governance framework to ensure that AI serves not only efficiency, but also ethics, equity, and public interest. Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said the plan focuses on key sectors such as education, healthcare, energy, and agriculture, while building Malaysia's AI talent pipeline within the public sector and among youth. 'We are all aware that technology is not neutral. It must reflect the values of the society it serves,' he said in his speech at the United Nations Public Service Forum 2025 here today. Fadillah, who is also the Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister, noted that structural reform in the civil service must be accompanied by system transformation. In this regard, digitalisation has become both the enabler and accelerator of change. Guided by the MyDigital Blueprint and the Public Service Digitalisation Strategic Plan, Fadillah said Malaysia has digitised over 500 government services and streamlined access through secure platforms such as MyDigital ID and real-time dashboards, he added. The United Nations Public Service Forum 2025 is held between June 23-25. – Bernama
New Straits Times
3 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Turning 80, UN faces fresh storm of doubts
WITH its influence discredited and its budget in tatters, the United Nations is weathering a firestorm of criticism as it celebrates its 80th anniversary – and tries to convince a polarized and conflict-wracked world it is more vital than ever. The UN's 193 member states will mark Thursday the signing of the organisation's foundational treaty, the UN Charter, on June 26, 1945 in San Francisco. After ratification, the United Nations came into being on October 24. The anniversary comes as the world body faces a multi-faceted crisis that has raised questions about its future. "Since the end of the Cold War, we have seen the organisation struggle in cases from the Rwandan genocide to the Iraq war," Richard Gowan, an analyst at the International Crisis Group, told AFP. "When each big crisis comes, commentators announce that the UN is finished. And yet it still survives," he added. "That said, this is an especially bad moment," Gowan acknowledged, pointing to numerous countries that are "deeply frustrated" by the UN Security Council's failure to act on major conflicts like those in Ukraine and Gaza. That inaction is largely due to the veto power of the council's five permanent members – Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States – which have competing interests. "The UN system as a whole has a credibility crisis, and it is not clear that the organisation's members have the resources or political energy to rescue it," Gowan told AFP. For Romuald Sciora, a research fellow at the French Institute for International and Strategic Affairs, the credibility issue can only result in the virtual disappearance of an organisation that is already a political "dwarf" on the world stage. "I'm not sure the UN will cease to exist, even by its 100th anniversary," Sciora told AFP. "I see a slow vanishing, and the UN becoming a bit of a ghost," like "these old organisations whose names we have forgotten." But experts say while the UN desperately needs to enact tough reforms, not all of its problems come from within, and it has become an easy scapegoat for its divided membership. Gissou Nia of the Washington-based Atlantic Council think tank says she fears that "the approach of might is right... is what is taking hold, and it brings us further and further away from the ideals" that led to the UN's founding as World War II ended. Nia, a human rights lawyer, says she hopes enough people will remain committed to the set of ideals and values "that will keep the UN alive," but still worries about the constant questioning of those values, notably from US ally Israel. "The constant berating from some very loud voices about the UN either being anti-Semitic, or the UN being a waste of funding, or the UN propping up dictators, actually has an impact," Nia told AFP. In a world devastated by the largest number of ongoing conflicts since 1945, and ravaged by major humanitarian crises, "the United Nations has never been more needed," Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said recently. "Our values have never been more relevant. And the needs have never been greater." Funding has nevertheless grown scarce as donors – especially the United States under President Donald Trump – pull back. Given the financial constraints, Guterres launched the UN80 initiative in a bid to streamline operations. Those changes could include thousands of positions being cut. For Gowan, "the UN is a very big organisation, and of course it suffers from a variety of bureaucratic problems, just as almost all big organisations do. (...) So of course it deserves scrutiny and criticism." But, he added, "I think we have gotten a bit too accustomed to having this system at our service, and tend to spend too much time grumbling about its flaws and not enough time acknowledging its successes." The United Nations remains a place where arch-rivals and enemies still sit at the same table to air grievances, and where the smallest member state can have its voice heard. The UN also does important work on the ground, from the World Food Programme bringing needed supplies to more than 100 million people in 120 countries last year, to the thousands of peacekeepers protecting civilians in conflict zones. "The UN was a magnificent tool," Sciora said. "Obviously, it would be worse if it were to disappear from one day to the next."
