By Nasuha Badrul Huzaini
SHAH ALAM, July 8 — The First Selangor Plan (RS-1) was developed with consideration for the most recent trends that emphasise good governance.
Bank Islam Bhd chief economist Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid said the context of RS-1 had also included the present and future needs.
“This is the first time I saw a specific plan for Selangor, and when I was presented with the documents, I was very impressed as it is very much like the private sector’s orientation.
“As an economist, I have heard a lot about volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity (VUCA). When Covid-19 happened, it raised a lot of questions and made us think about the next step.
“Are we going to stay in our comfort zone? How do we move forward? While discussing that, there comes another question… will there be recession in developed countries due to the Ukraine-Russia war, the Zero Covid-19 policy in China or the increase of inflation rate?
“All of these economic jolts have prompted the government, both federal and state, to always be concerned about the next step. It is not only to stabilise the situation but also to be forward-thinking,” said Mohd Afzanizam as a panellist during the SMART and effective governance forum session at the First Selangor Plan Pre-Launch Symposium at the Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) Convention Centre, here yesterday.
Other panellists during the session were Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari and former Education Ministry secretary-general Datuk Mohd Gazali Abas.
Mohd Afzanizam also said the issue of governance has been getting more awareness where institutional investors also have prioritised the environmental, social and governance aspects, which need to be considered by the government.
Meanwhile, Mohd Gazali said that the RS-1 was equally thorough as compared to documentations done at the federal level, both in terms of the diagnostic of economic analysis and sectoral perspective.
“This is what the federal agencies want to see, the translation of the Malaysia Plan and other blueprints in the context of the state government, which has been initiated by Selangor as the first state to come out with such a plan.
“What remains to be seen is the implementation of this plan. With this RS-1, the state government has already thought and prepared on what are the actions to be taken when faced with any challenges, be it from the local, national or international level,” he said.
Yesterday, Amirudin had launched the symposium of the RS-1, which will be tabled at the Selangor State Legislative Assembly on July 25.
