TO ensure the well-being of rural and regional communities, the Rural and Regional Development Ministry will focus on four major components of sustainable rural development.
“The four aspects include the improvement of good and efficient governance at the local, district and regional levels by connecting the private sector, civil society and government agencies,” said the newly-minted Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The Bagan Datuk MP who is also the Rural and Regional Development Minister opined that programmes of change and transformation for rural areas needed to be inclusive.
According to Zahid, another aspect is the development of the productive sector which refers to agriculture, non-agricultural industries, mining, tourism, natural resources, environmental management, among others.
“The institutional and capability development in several thrust areas include education, training, health, advanced research, marketing, savings and credit, transportation and environment,” he penned on his Facebook page. “The development of rural infrastructure includes roads, electricity, telecommunications, housing, water and public health.”
Moreover, Zahid added that all narratives, definitions, prescriptions, and descriptions about the characteristics of rural and regional development needed to be refined because this would affect the discourse and narrative of rural communities.
“This affirmation was important to highlight the inclusive quality that was part of a larger societal entity that needed to be given continuous priority by agencies, ministries and the community,” Bernama reported him as saying.
“This is also to ensure that the imperative of the village concept that I have presented before moves in line with the ministry’s mission and vision. It is our responsibility to ensure the sustainability of rural and regional development.” – Dec 29, 2022
