The Malaysian CSO-SDG Alliance Launches Policy Brief on Sustainable Development in Malaysia

The Malaysian CSO-SDG Alliance ("Alliance") has launched its first Policy Brief, entitled "Malaysian CSO-SDG Alliance Policy Brief 2023: Accelerating the SDGs in Malaysia" — a contribution from independent civil society on how Malaysians can live together and thrive.

The launch was held at Ilham Gallery on 13^th December 2023. Among the guests invited were Encik Asfaazam Kasbani, Director of the National SDG Centre (Pusat SDG Negara) and Her Excellency, Ms. Karima El Korri, United Nations Resident Coordinator for Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam. They gave speeches along with the Co-Chairs of the Alliance, Lavanya Rama Iyer and Kiu Jia Yaw.

Watch the launch video (1:36)

The Policy Brief presents a concise compilation of the most pressing concerns about achieving sustainable development in Malaysia from a grassroots perspective. It sets out the key issues, delves into some cross-cutting root causes, and presents a set of recommendations that can help accelerate the implementation of the SDGs in Malaysia.

The main themes are governance, marginalised communities, data availability and accessibility, problems with the existing economic model, human rights and legislative issues, and education.

To illustrate the fact that human context and qualitative aspects must not be overlooked in the analysis of aggregated data and average figures, several speakers were featured to demonstrate the different "lived realities" of fellow Malaysians.

• Nikri a/l Mohamad, a representative of a Jakun community from Air Hitam spoke about the land grabbing of ancestral lands (with translation assistance from Joseph Koh).

• Bathmavathi Krishnan, President of the Association of Women with Disabilities Malaysia, shared the difficulties faced by persons with disabilities.

• Patricia Low, a Malaysian mother with two children born overseas, spoke (and recited a poem) about our country's gender discriminatory laws in conferring citizenship.

The Alliance Co-Chairs recounted the rigorous process through which the Policy Brief was prepared, and thanked the Alliance's partners and stakeholders for the valuable contribution and participation in it. The atmosphere at the event brimmed with gratitude, pride and solidarity.

H.E. Karima, in her speech remarked that in her experience around the world, the civil society in Malaysia is the most vibrant she has seen. She appreciated the openness in working in partnership, which is the only real way to achieve the SDGs.

H.E. Karima remarked that: "It's not a civil society that is in the shadows; it's a civil society that is partnering with the government."

The Policy Brief was launched with a simple but effective unveiling ceremony, and concluded with a collective commitment to empower, augment and strengthen the voices and participation of all segments of society to contribute more significantly to the national sustainable development agenda.

Download the Policy Brief from the website of the Malaysian CSO-SDG Alliance here.