SINGAPORE, Oct 15 2025: The Sarawak government plans to revamp the structure of the public service by creating a 'lean civil service' that emphasises on the effectiveness and efficiency of service delivery.
Datuk Patinggi Johari Openg: Services provided by the public service to be assigned to government-linked companies
Premier Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Openg said this approach would see more services being assigned to self-reliant government-linked companies (GLCs) in the future.
"The management of state assets and strategic investments will be entrusted to GLCs that will operate professionally as corporate bodies in order to be able to generate returns for the companies and also returns in the form of dividends to the Sarawak government," he said at the closing of the Sarawak Civil Service One Team Retreat (SCS OTR) 2025 programme here, today.
He said the GLCs would be vested with the power to generate revenue and establish its own service and salary schemes so that the government would no longer bear the cost of certain services.
The government, as the largest investor in these GLCs, would in return expect returns in the form of dividends, he stressed.
He told heads of departments at the retreat that this had been the model used in Singapore that resulted in a public service and GLCs that are capable of offering high salaries and world class services.
Describing the GLCs as “State-Owned Enterprises” (SOEs) the role of these enterprises is to complement the role of the private sector to drive economic transformation particularly in areas that would require high capital outlay.
Citing the methanol project in Bintulu as an example, he said the local private sector would not be able to take on large investment projects without the involvement of the government through its SOEs.
He said the state government would be taking stock of all its GLCs and assets to determine their value in order to be able to optimise their resources for the benefit of the state in line with what he described as a “State ownership policy”.
On civil service development, Abang Johari said that the role of public servants today is not merely as policy implementers, but as strategic partners of the government in realising a holistic and sustainable development agenda towards 2030 and beyond.
He stressed that public servants need to understand Sarawak's economic strategies, including aspects of the green economy, carbon trade, and investments in strategic industries like energy and gas.
"Sarawak is investing in training programmes and international exposure through cooperation with leading institutions such as Harvard and Oxford universities and the World Bank.
"We also provide special executive programmes for senior public service officials, so they are always updated on current issues and global trends.
"We want public servants who understand how future technology works. Nowadays, everything is controlled by technology, from chip design to smart device systems. All of this requires power supply, water, and most importantly, brain power," he explained.
He also expressed his aspiration to see Sarawak become a developed and high-income region on par with Nordic countries in Asia by 2030, even becoming the 'economic star of Asia'.
He also touched on future aspirations, including mastery in advanced technology and chip design, as well as involvement in high-impact industries by 2050.
"Sarawak can become a star in Asia with the support of quality public servants who have fresh ideas and are brave enough to bring forth new ideas," he added.
Among those present were Sarawak Deputy Premiers Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas, Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan and Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian; Minister of Women, Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development Datuk Sri Fatimah Abdullah; Minister of Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Datuk Sri Stephen Rundi Utom; Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Datuk Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah; Minister of Transport Datuk Sri Lee Kim Shin; Minister of Education, Innovation and Talent Development Datuk Sri Roland Sagah Wee Inn and Minister in the Premier's Department, Datuk Sri John Sikie Tayai.
No comments:
Post a Comment