KOTA KINABALU: The strength, commitment and capability of the entire civil service could determine the success of the Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) 2.0 development plan, says State Secretary Datuk Zainudin Aman.
He said their ability to work as a well-coordinated team, complement one another and share responsibility towards achieving the same goals is the spirit that forms the foundation of the SMJ 2.0 Roadmap.
“The success of a government is not measured solely by the policies it announces or the plans it formulates, but by the extent to which those policies improve the lives of the people,” he said when officiating the SMJ 2.0 Strategic Implementation Forum here Tuesday (July 7).
Zainuddin said the culture of working in isolation, or the silo mentality, must be abandoned and be replaced with a strengthened collaborative culture that positions every ministry, department and agency as strategic partners in driving the state and nation's development agenda.
"Strategic collaboration must be strengthened among ministries and agencies at both the state and federal levels, while expanding synergies with the private sector, academia and the community to ensure that every development initiative is implemented in a more coordinated, efficient and impactful manner.
"At the same time, strategic communication must be enhanced through transparent performance reporting, the use of monitoring dashboards and effective data sharing to ensure that every policy and initiative can be monitored, evaluated and continuously improved," he said.
Zainudin said said the world today is vastly different from a decade ago, with rapid technological advancement, particularly in Artificial Intelligence (AI), transforming the global landscape, including the way the public sector carries out its daily responsibilities.
"As such, SMJ 2.0 recognises digitalisation and AI as strategic enablers that will strengthen administrative efficiency, enhance productivity and transform the way we plan, make decisions and deliver services to the people," he said.
He said achievements under SMJ 1.0 have proven that when clear policies are backed by effective implementation, they can deliver tangible benefits to both the state and its people.
For SMJ 2.0, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will not be assessed based on the quality of reporting, but on the extent to which they improve the well-being of the people of Sabah, said Zainudin.
Meanwhile, he said that following his meeting with Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar on July 6, several key matters were agreed upon to strengthen public service delivery and the implementation of Sabah's development agenda.
Among them, he said, was the implementation of the Bureaucratic Red Tape Reform (RKB) in project management through the "Review, Keep and Boost" concept to expedite project management processes in the state.
Zainudin added that the proposal to create nearly 300 posts involving 26 agencies under the
implementation of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) was also agreed to without requiring a Self-Audit of Establishment and Organisation (AKPO).
In addition, meetings between the Federal and State Governments will be jointly chaired by the Chief Secretary to the Government and the State Secretary to discuss the implementation status and resolution of development projects, he said.
In this regard, he called on all Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Departments to prioritise the implementation of the RKB by identifying at least one existing work procedure that can be improved through the RKB approach.
“Every ministry and department should also have a strategic plan, ISO certification, an Anti-Bribery Management System (ABMS) and Good Regulatory Practice (GRP), while integrating AI technology into work processes that have undergone the RKB phase to maximise the efficiency of public service delivery,” said Zainduin.
Elaborating further, he said SMJ 2.0 is not merely a continuation of the success of SMJ 1.0, but a more strategic transformation built on three main pillars: key economic growth sectors covering agriculture, industry and tourism; human capital and people's well-being; as well as infrastructure connectivity and green sustainability.
He said these three pillars are supported by five enablers and three key focus areas, namely the blue economy, AI adoption and inclusive development, to ensure balanced development throughout Sabah.
At the same time, he urged all state ministries, departments and agencies to formulate strategic plans based on the SMJ 2.0 Roadmap, align their respective strategies, initiatives and KPIs with the development plan, and ensure that every initiative is implemented swiftly, effectively and with meaningful impact.
