UTC and RTC significant public service transformation initiatives

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The Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) Melaka started operation in 2012 offering a complete range of facilities and services. — Bernama photo

The Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) Melaka started operation in 2012 offering a complete range of facilities and services. — Bernama photo

KUALA LUMPUR: The government’s Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) and Rural Transformation Centre (RTC) initiative has indisputably succeeded in widening the reach of its services throughout the country.

Established along the lines of a one-stop multi-service provider, the UTC and RTC – the brainchild of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak – come with a complete range of facilities to not only serve the rakyat better but to prosper them as well, in line with the government’s People First, Performance Now principle.

Both centres house some 40 core government and private-sector agencies that provide a multitude of services and even have facilities for entrepreneurs to run their businesses – all under one roof.

The UTC/RTC initiative is part of the National Blue Ocean Strategy (NBOS) which was introduced by the government to enhance the quality of its services to the people through strategic partnerships with the private sector.

It is among the government’s initiatives to transform the public delivery system and render the civil service more people-oriented.

The establishment of UTCs and RTCs at strategic locations nationwide has enabled the government to provide services to the people more efficiently and effectively via a more dynamic delivery system.

The transformation of the public delivery system through NBOS and the establishment of UTCs and RTCs have succeeded in tearing down the ‘walls’ that separated siloed public-sector organisations. In other words, the various ministries and government agencies have emerged from their siloes to strike up strategic collaborations with each other for the benefit of the people.

Najib, who became Malaysia’s sixth prime minister in 2009, marked his 40th year in politics yesterday (Feb 21).

He was 22 when he was thrust into politics after his father, Tun Abdul Razak Hussein, died of leukaemia on Jan 14, 1976.

Very much in line with the government’s aspiration of attaining high-income nation status by 2020, the UTC/RTC initiative has every potential to enhance the people’s earning power because the centres are also designed to act as hubs to spur economic activities, promote sale of value-added agricultural products and provide financial services, as well as business and entrepreneurial development services.

The people in the cities and smaller towns where the UTCs and RTCs have been set up are said to be very satisfied with the wide range of services and facilities available at the centres and it will not be surprising if communities in other locations are also eagerly awaiting similar set-ups to be introduced in their areas.

Hence, it was, indeed, heartening news for many when the prime minister announced during the revised Budget 2016 presentation that the government would proceed with its plan to open 10 more UTCs in Labuan, Sungai Petani, Miri and Sibu (Sarawak), Kota Bharu, Kuala Terengganu, Tawau and Keningau (Sabah), Seremban and Kangar.

Four RTCs are expected to be opened in Jawi (Penang), Rembau (Negeri Sembilan), Sungai Rambai (Melaka) and Betong (Sarawak) this year.

To recap, the first RTC was launched in Gopeng, Perak on Feb 18, 2012, and the first UTC in Melaka on June 23 the same year.

Both centres were officially opened by Najib.

To date, eight UTCs have been established nationwide and they are located at Pudu Sentral (Kuala Lumpur), Melaka Sentral (Melaka), Alor Star (Kedah), Ipoh (Perak), Johor Bahru (Johor), Kota Kinabalu (Sabah), Kuantan (Pahang) and Kuching (Sarawak). There are also two mini UTCs in Sentul and Keramat in Kuala Lumpur. — Bernama