Tragic loss of a visionary civil servant

NOT many would know that the late Datuk Dr Sundaran Annamalai (pic), who died in the helicopter crash in Sarawak, was among those who were primarily responsible for the World Bank setting up an office in Kuala Lumpur.

During his stint in the World Bank as executive director in charge of South-East Asia, he helped formulate policies in several countries including Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei, Vietnam, Lao PDR, and Myanmar. His job with the World Bank also took him to Nepal, Fiji and Tonga.

The World Bank recently paid tribute to Dr Sundaran for his role in advocating for a world free of poverty, country capacity building and infrastructure financing.

I have lost a personal friend who was affable, approachable and never gave a second thought to helping others.

But the nation has lost a civil servant who served with a high standard of integrity, a visionary with credentials that helped raise Malaysia’s image in the international financial world.

When he was at the Finance Ministry, Dr Sundaran was instrumental in formulating medium and long-term policies especially for the national budget and the various five-year development plans.

He was also pivotal in drafting policies when Malaysia faced economic challenges arising from external headwinds, a fact acknowledged recently by his long-time boss and close friend, Tan Sri Irwan Srigar.

In his Facebook posting, Irwan described Dr Sundaran as a

highly knowledgeable man of integrity, calibre and strong vision.

During his time at the National Strategic Unit, he led the implementation of several programmes including those relating to entrepreneurship. I can attest to this one, having known him for many years and being an economist myself.

Dr Sundaran, the highest ranked officer within the government from the Indian community, indirectly gave invaluable advice on how to improve the socio-economic status of the poor Indian community. We always brainstormed several important issues relating to the Indian poor and he always had a soft spot for the B40 category.

One particular matter to note was his push for a national blueprint for the Indian community by the Prime Minister, which was announced alongside the 11th Malaysia Plan. Work is currently being done on this and it is expected to be announced soon.

Additionally, his passion for the community should never be forgotten. He gave invaluable views and inputs for the development of the Indian community via the Socio-Economic Development for the Indian Community (Sedic) as well as the Secretariat for the Empowerment of Indian Entrepreneurs (SEED).

His work with non-governmental organisations was also immense but he went about this very quietly.

He was actively involved in seeking funds for NGOs. He sought funding to build a campus to provide skills training for Indian youths in the high-risk category within two weeks of submitting the proposal to the Government.

His passing is a tragic loss for family members, the civil service, and me as a personal friend.

MANOKARAN MOTTAIN

Adviser

Malaysian Indian Student Transformation Association