80 Penerapan Konsep MADANI dalam Perkhidmatan Awam iii) Increased Social Capital and Cohesion According to Richard Adler and Judy Goggin, “Civic engagement describes how an active citizen participates in the life of a community in order to improve conditions for others or to help shape the community’s future.” Social capital is the value derived from positive connections between people and the networks of relationships among people who live and work in a particular society, enabling that society to function effectively. Whereas, social cohesion refers to the strength of relationships, connectedness and the sense of solidarity among members of a community with two dimensions: the sense of belonging of a community and the relationships among members within the community itself. Hence, upraising civic engagement would increase social capital and contribute towards social cohesion. This would be fundamental in order to establish social balance, inclusivity, economic dynamism, and national unity and at the same time reducing inequality, socioeconomic disparities and social fractures in the society. iv) Contribute towards the effectiveness of the implementation of a public policy or government decision Diagram 1 is a brief illustration on how ‘civic engagement’ influences the impact of a government decision or policy implementation. A public policy is an institutional plan encompassed law, regulation, guideline, action plan to address public concerns. A public policy aims to protect certain value, resolve issue or ensure well-being at all levels. The spill over effects if a public policy is effectively implemented, would covers beyond and above a country’s need. For example, if neighbouring country set a proper policy and enforce stringent law on open burning especially in a large-scale agricultural area, risk of peat fire thus haze incidence not only minimized in the said country but benefits beyond regional level. It would be a challenge to implement effectively any public policy and or enforce a law within limited government resources and capacities. For example, Malaysia is one of twelve (12) mega-biodiverse countries in the world. Malaysia has an estimated 15,000 species of vascular plants, 306 species of mammals, 742 species of birds, 242 species of amphibians, 567 species of reptiles, over 449 species of freshwater fish, over 1,619 species of marine fish and more than 150,000 species of invertebrates. Some of the iconic species in Malaysia include the Malayan tiger, Malayan tapir, Asian elephant, Orangutan, Sunda pangolin, and Sunda clouded leopard. It is almost impossible for a government to monitor, protect and control, for instance, 4.85 million hectares of permanent reserved forest area in peninsular Malaysia (2021) which housed some of these species. In order to prevent illegal logging, encroachment and wildlife trafficking incidences; involvement and participation from a community at large is vital. Government should engage civic society leaders from all segments namely business, political, non-political, NGO, CSO to assist. Civic engagement comes when these segment of society takes in charge in protecting our natural heritage. For business community, efforts related to environmental sustainability could be incorporated in their medium or a long-term business plan. Realizing the important functions of wetland to prevent floods, filtering pollution and storm damage, safeguard water supply and provide home to thousand animal and plant species including migratory species, Gamuda Cove is initiating action to help to preserve and protect Paya Indah Wetlands, a wetland adjacent to its development area. A nature conserved within a township, will, undeniably increase the value of the property by giving scenic and aesthetic value of nature to its residents and visitors. Such cooperation between federal, state and a company may benefit not only in term of business profit but ensuring ecological balance when wetland is preserved and reduce government burden in managing the environmentally critical area.
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