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ARTICLE MALAYSIA'S LOCAL AGENDA 21: IMPLEMENTATION AND

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SUPPLEMENT ISSUE

ARTICLE
MALAYSIA’S LOCAL AGENDA 21: IMPLEMENTATION AND
APPROACH IN KUALA LUMPUR, SELANGOR AND JOHOR BAHRU
Nur IzieAdiana Abidin1, Rozana Zakaria1*, Eeydzah Aminuddin1, Chai Chang Saar1,
Vikneswaran Munikanan2, Irina Safitri Zin3, Masilah Bandi4
1
Faculty of Civil Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor, 81310, Skudai, MALAYSIA
2
Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia, Kem Sungai Besi, Kuala
Lumpur,57000, MALAYSIA
3
Faculty of Built Environment, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor, 81310, Skudai, MALAYSIA
4
Office of Asset Management, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor, 81310, Skudai, MALAYSIA

ABSTRACT
Background: Local Agenda 21 (LA 21) has been adopted in a holistic approach to facilitate the economic development, with a manner of
protecting and preserving the environment, and a goal to achieve the sustainable living in an equitable society. Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, and
Johor Bahru are one of the urbanized State and city in Malaysia for which many initiatives have been taken to integrate the economic, social
and environmental solutions into its urban development. This paper amasses the LA 21 implementation which performed by Kuala Lumpur
City Hall, Iskandar Malaysia Johor and the pioneer in the state of Selangor which is Shah Alam and Petaling Jaya in order to comprehend
their commitments given in the program. In addition, the implementation of LA 21 is summarized with the framework of initiatives taken by
the local government to embrace the local community involvement. Methods:The methodology relies on the document analysis related to the
LA 21 activities conducted by these cities in summary tabulation of practices. Results: Based on the results of the analysis, it indicates that
each of the state and city has created their own sustainable approaches by carrying out impressive programs and plans such as clearing and
cleaning up areas, recycling programs, cultural and heritage activities, develop the neighbourhood action plan, implementation green
building project and others. Whilst, the initiatives taken by the local government to establish the commitment from communities vary from
awareness campaign, seminar, general meeting with focus group and develop a strategy to deliver effective information such as focusing on
the interest group, region, age and gender. Conclusion: Through this program, the committee, the Local Authority, and the private sector are
actively contributing in building up the LA 21 through having an active participation and voluntarily involvement. In conclusion, LA 21
implementation in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru continues as a program that able to generate the present and future
development exemplar to the other City Councils and States in Malaysia. It is a program to forge a partnership between various stakeholders
to show the commitment to the sustainable development.

INTRODUCTION
Sustainable development is defined in various ways and the most common definition is “The development
KEY WORDS
Local Agenda 21,
that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations” [1]. While, [2],
Malaysia, Sustainable defined sustainable development is “improving the quality of human life while living within the carrying
Development, capacity of supporting ecosystem”. Sustainable development measures three major components which
Sustainable Cities are economic, social and environmental systems in order to provide the generation with healthy and
meaningful life [3].

The unsustainable urban development has impacted vastly in the urban neighbourhood which led to
negative impact on the environment and urban quality of living. Sustainable development has become the
foundation of planning and design of building structures and infrastructures. The land use development for
neighbourhood should be protected and saved for the use of generation [4]. In the new millennium, the
sustainability agenda has the potential of ensuring country in developing its economies with minimal or no
irreversible damage to the environment and adverse impact on the health of its citizens [5]. As world had
Received: 13 Oct 2016 recognized that the present sustainable development is not dominant in fulfil the needs for the current
Accepted: 16 Nov 2016
Published: 6 Dec 2016
and future generations, an integral approach is needed in order to achieve these three components. Thus,
LA 21 was accepted as an indicator to be used by all the countries to determine and measure the
sustainable development progress [6].

PROFILE OF MALAYSIA SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The Malaysia intention towards sustainability was first established during the Third Malaysian Plan (1976-
1980). It focuses on the natural heritage preservation by concern on the impact of the growth of
industrialization and population. Then, during the Fifth Malaysian Plan (1986-1990), the effort towards
environmental protection has been part of the main factor in national development plan. These include to
*Corresponding Author minimize the deforestation, tourism and urbanization, make a preventive measure through conservation
Email: rozana@utm.my instead of curative and incorporation environmental planning in project development [7].
Tel.: +60137791810

During Eight Malaysian Plan, it was further intensified to incorporate environmental solutions into planning
and development. Thus, the planning tools were developed, the regulatory framework and capacity from

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institutional level was strengthened. It has resulted Malaysia was ranked 38 out of 146 countries
worldwide and also ranked in 2nd place in Asia which concern on the environmental sustainability.
Malaysia also has been ranked 9th from 133 countries in Environmental Performance Index Study due to
the effort to protect the vitality of ecosystems. The environmental stewardship is continuing to Ninth
Malaysian Plan (2006-2010) by ensuring for balancing between the needs of development and to
maintain the environment. It greatly emphasizes on the efforts to intensify the conservation, natural
resources management and mitigate the negative effects on the environment by developing the
environmental planning tools [8]. The current 11th Malaysian Plan also encourage to pursue the green
growth for sustainability and resilience to ensure the development is committed with sustainable manner
since the beginning. It is to conserve an protect the precious environment and natural resource for the
benefits of present a future generation [9]. Basically, the Malaysia sustainable development concern on
three objectives, firstly is to promote the economic force to achieve a high standard of living, secondly is to
promote cohesion and social justice and lastly is monitoring and protecting the environment for
degradation prevention. Therefore, the incorporation of the objectives is included in the national planning
strategies mainly in the five-year Malaysian Plans. Besides, the LA21 adoption and implementation is
another effort for the connection and to strengthen between environment and development towards
sustainability achievement [10].

LOCAL AGENDA 21
In June 1992, LA 21 has been introduced during the United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development which was held in Rio de Janeiro. There are 178 countries including Malaysia who have
attended for the conference and it is a global action plan for the sustainable development ([11]. During the
conference, a mandate has been stated where Local Agenda 21 should be achieved in each country by the
year 1996. The mandate also encourages the Local Authorities to have dialogues within the community
towards achieving the development and consensus on the LA 21 Action Plan. Besides, the Local
Authorities should also work together and play an important role with all the local community of the sector
[12]. Since the LA 21 was introduced, a process of sustainability actions has been planned by the Local
Authorities and the action pursued by implementing various programs [13]. Therefore, at the Council level,
the requirement of unique approach is crucial in order to deliver the service that could facilitate mediation
between the pressure of competing for economic development, environmental protection and more
equitable society [14]. The LA 21 represents a major innovation in local planning for sustainable
development. They have an international identity and an international network, but are locally driven and
implemented [15].

THE CITY OF KUALA LUMPUR LA 21 IMPLEMENTATION

From a small town, Kuala Lumpur became the capital city and the largest city in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur
has become an important and play a role in various fields including business, finance,
administration,education, religion, culture and sports. Kuala Lumpur municipal affairs are administered by
a single corporation (corporation sole), since 1 April 1961 which is Commissioner of Capital. It was then
converted into Mayor of Kuala Lumpur when awarded as a City status on February 1, 1972. Kuala Lumpur
LA 21 (LA 21 KL) is a program that emphasizes the involvement of third parties, local authorities (City all),
public and private sectors to work together in planning and managing their environment towards the
achievement of sustainable development and higher quality of life. LA 21 KL is implemented in line with
the Kuala Lumpur Structure Plan 2020 which is to create the role of Kuala Lumpur as an international
commercial and financial center, create a city structure which is efficient and balanced, to enhance the
living environment, forming a distinctive identity and image of the city and to have efficient and effective
governance. Overall, the vision and goals for Kuala Lumpur have been formulated to create a sustainable
city planning in ensuring that the City can achieve a balance between physical, economic, social and
environment [16].

THE STATE OF SELANGOR AND LA21 IMPLEMENTATION

Selangor is located in the right and west Peninsular Malaysia with their total area of 7930km 2. The State
of Selangor consists of nine (9) districts and their rate of population is the highest in Malaysia where in
1991 to 2000 their estimate population growth is 6.02%. In terms of development, Selangor is the most
developed State in Malaysia because they had grown in almost every aspect of development. Selangor
also has been considered as a State that contributes to the growth of country development and thus it is
known as a house of economic power. In fact, Selangor is the state where their population enjoying their
high standard living and having an excellent infrastructure. Furthermore, Selangor has their some
distinctive developments which are not apparent in other 13 States in Malaysia. This means that,
Selangor was having their development rapidly in terms of economy, socio-economic structure as well as
environmental impacts [17]. Besides, in Malaysia, Selangor also is the first state who developed an
approach of sustainability by incorporating comprehensive strategies of sustainability to all the level of
governance. In order to bring their environmental consideration into social policy and economic
mainstream, Selangor has incorporated a vision framed of their sustainable development into their
process of political at both national and global levels. Undoubtedly, the state of Selangor is among the
successful state with respect to their social-economic development. In order to embark the comprehensive

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program of LA 21 in Malaysia, Selangor has been chosen as the first state in incorporating the strategies
of sustainability to all the level of governance [18]. „Agenda 21 Selangor‟ is also implemented as to
develop the LA 21 plans by having a pilot project in Petaling Jaya Municipal Council and Shah Alam City
Council. With the various consultations given by the stakeholders within the State such as public, private,
Non-governmental Organisation and communities, the LA21 in Selangor was developed by having 103
initial set of indicators. The indicators consist of 14 economic sustainability, 16 environmental
sustainability, 11 natural resource sustainability and 52 indicators of social sustainability [19]. Their
commitment has started since June 1999 and they are producing the blueprints for sustainable
development under the three years project development namely as “Environmentally Sensitive Areas of
Selangor, Agenda 21 Selangor and Guidelines for Implementation of Agenda 21 Selangor. This shows that
Selangor is an active state in implementing the LA 21 [20].

THE ISKANDAR MALAYSIA JOHOR AND BLUEPRINTS AGENDA

Iskandar Malaysia located in the South East Asia and southern Peninsular Malaysia. The total area of
Iskandar Malaysia is 2216.3 km2 which is three times from the Singapore size and two times from the
Hong Kong Island size. The Planning Area consists of five local authorities namely as Johor Bahru City
Council, Johor Bahru Tengah Municipal Counci, Pasir Gudang Local Authority, Kulai Municipal Council and
Pontian District Council [21].

Iskandar Malaysia has developed its Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP) which needs support,
cooperation, commitment, active participation and sustained involvement of various stakeholders, players
and agencies from all levels. These include the local governments, federal, states, communities, local
leaders, global players of industry and business communities. Through the CDP, several blueprints agenda
were developed such as Low Carbon Society, human capital and safety and security. The blueprints are
concerned about the strategies or policies such as environment, land use, infrastructure and economic.
From 32 planned blueprints agenda, 24 has been completed. The action plans and framework of the
blueprint is based on the benchmark with other world or city best practice which act as a guide to
implement the strategy, project or programs [22].

STAKEHOLDERS/PARTNERSHIP IN LOCAL AGENDA 21

In planning sustainable communities, the participatory approach becomes an important tool to ensure a
meaningful participatory. It is because; a broad participation in sustainable development is to identify
problems, formulating plans and to implement the decisions. Participatory approach consists of focus
group discussion, meetings and site visit in order to come out with an action plan and actual
implementation. Participatory means different people and organizations, different things and settings. The
involvement of communities during the planning stage would be much more beneficial in bringing the
transparency in the decision making process. It is because the input gain from the citizens creates a useful
solution and broader range of perspective to overcome the problems facing in the communities [23].

As to determine and implement the vision for the sustainable city or town, the involvement of stakeholders
is significantly important. Stakeholders are based on partnership group which they will jointly together in
making their own decision [24]. The involvement of the local community and Local Authorities also
crucially needed because Agenda 21 offers the involvement in a holistic approach. It encourages the Local
Authorities and communities to build a relationship by having a partnership with other stakeholders, the
government and non-government organization [25].

Basically, in Local Agenda 21, there are three (3) important parties involve which are private sector, Local
Authority and Community [26]. According to [207], the participation by the stakeholders has a great
implication towards the effectiveness of this program. In Malaysia, the involvements of stakeholders in
local Agenda 21 are among the public sector such as Government, Local Authorities, Federal Government
and statutory bodies such as Tenaga Nasional Berhad (Electricity Board), Telekom Malaysia, Alam Flora
(the company who manage and reduce waste) and etc. Besides, the private sector, Non-governmental
agencies and communities also had shown their interest in Local Agenda 21 by giving their own
contribution to the program. The participation of these entire groups could influence and empower the
decision making process.

In addition, the involvement of stakeholders and partnerships also important to plan and manage the
environment towards sustainable development with the intention to improve the quality of life to be more
comfortable [28].

METHODS
A comprehensive literature review was used with a thorough study of record review to gather the detailed
information of the LA 21 implementation in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Johor Bahru. All sets of data
information relies on the exploration of books, articles, published journals and website. The LA 21
initiatives was listed by doing a summary tabulation of practices.

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INITIATIVES OF LOCAL AGENDA 21 IN KUALA LUMPUR

The Kuala Lumpur LA21 showed a good progress and positive development in the effort to achieve the
vision to make Kuala Lumpur “ a world-class city‟ by 2020. Kuala Lumpur LA 21 is a continuing program
for Kuala Lumpur City Hall as a local authorities in engaging society, the private sector, non-governmental
oganizations (NGOs), community-based organizations (CBOs), citizens of the city and other interested
parties in implementing programs and activities in accordance with local requirements. In fact, the local
community is encouraged to cooperate to reach a consensus to reduce or deal with specific issues in their
respective areas and to act managing and increasing the quality of their environment. The effort taken by
Kuala Lumpur City Hall in the implementation of LA 21 as tabulated in [Table 1].

Table 1: Kuala lumpur city hall agenda 21 actions

Programs / Activities Action by

Launching of „ Green Generation Campaign and Exhibition
Tree planting program in
Eco Kids Day-Earth Day
Launching a campaign of „ No Plastic Bag‟ with AEON JUSCO „Let‟s Go Green
Cleaning and clearing area at Bukit Bintang Central
Eco-community project: Recovery of Penchala river in conjunction with the “World Rivers Day‟
‟10,000 Green Expression‟ to raise awareness and preserve about environmental issues
Eco Kids Day as an exposure and awareness of environmental issue

Committee
Clean City
Meeting 'Basic Use of Plastic Bags'
Recycling Project
„Keep Planting Trees‟ program
Camping on “ Waste Management Reduction Progam”
Briefing on recycling awareness program
Camp introduction program on „Greening for a Sustainable Future‟
Environment art camp
Environmental Eco art camp for community
Waste management project
Seminar and workshop on recycling
Herb Garden Project
Food waste composting project
An awards ceremony for continuing the implementation of the LA21 program

Prosperous and
EDC camp to educate people on environmental, health, social welfare and the arts

Committee
Excellence identity camp for parents and students

Safe
Examination workshop for primary school assessment test
Parenting education seminar
Lower secondary assessment seminar
Neighbourhood cleaning program
School Assessment Report
Smart workshop for primary school assessment test
Safe city programs
Briefing and Dialogue with the society
Briefing on the blueprints cleanliness
Sports clinic and workshop (badminton)
Clinical Arts: Theater
Crime prevention seminar

INITIATIVES OF LOCAL AGENDA 21 IN SELANGOR

The Selangor commitment towards the sustainable development was underpinned by having a realization
of „Agenda 21 Selangor‟.There are various Councils exist in the state of Selangor which adopt the Local
Agenda 21, however, in this paper, the discussion is only highlights on the implementation in two Councils
which are Petaling Jaya Municipal Council and Shah Alam City Council. These two Councils were selected
because they are among the earliest and active Council implementing the LA21 in Selangor.

Shah alam city council

Shah Alam City Council was chosen as the LA21 pilot project in 2000. The sustainable development was
created in Shah Alam City Council as an agenda for the social, economic and physical development. In
order to consolidate the Local Agenda 21 implementation, there are three committees has been
established which are Environmetal Committee, Social Committee and Economy Committee. An effort as
per [Table 2], given by the Shah Alam City Council was received a good response from the residents in
creating more green area in their town.

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Table 2: Shah alam city council agenda 21 actions

Programs / Activities Action by

Medical Checking by Johor Medical Group
R
Program of „Loving our trees‟
E

Environmental Committee
Farming and gardening program in residents area
S
Learning program on the technique of composting the food waste
U
Children‟s day and World Environment Day celebration
L
Cleaning and clearing program in residents area
T
Recycling campaign program to the community and schools in Shah Alam
S
A visit to Solid Waste Management Integrated
Seminar on controlling aedes on construction site
Campaign on minimize the paper and polystyrene usage
( Agenda 21 exhibition
Local
Clean zone briefing day to ensure the residents are clean
Inspection and spot check in food premises
Family day by having various of activities to the residents
Malaysia Local Enforcement seminar
Vandalism prevention program
Aerobic and extreme games program for youth and communities
Colouring contest, cooking competition and collection of used cooking coil Social
Committee
Environmental day celebration and tree planting event
Medical checking by Johor Medical Group
Le tour de Langkawi program
Installation of white LED project on every street light Economy
Committee
Green building project in section 14 Shah Alam
Family day by having various of activities to the residents
Malaysia Local Enforcement seminar
Vandalism prevention program
Aerobic and extreme games program for youth and communities
Colouring contest, cooking competition and collection of used cooking coil Social
Committee
Environmental day celebration and tree planting event
Medical checking by Johor Medical Group
Le tour de Langkawi program
Installation of white LED project on every street light Economy
Committee
Green building project in section 14 Shah Alam

Petaling jaya city council

In 1999, Ministry of Housing and Local Government has elected Petaling Jaya Municipal Council to
become among the pioneer project of LA21. Petaling Jaya Municipal Council, communities and local
authorities were committed to participate of LA21 program in order to develop a comfortable, safe,
harmony and peaceful city. There are also three committees has been established which were
Environmental Committee, Social Committee and Safety Committee to further develop the implementation
approach of LA 21. The establishment these committees is based on the identification of issues faced by
Petaling Jaya which is in the area of safety, social integration and environment. The following [Table 3]
shows the program implemented.

Table 3: Petaling jaya city council agenda 21 actions

Programs / Activities Action by

Briefing session regarding on Local Agenda 21 at Petaling Jaya school
Demonstration on composting the kitchen waste
Environmental

Printing and distribution of leaflets on awareness of recycling

Committee

Establishment of recycling center

Awareness program on the important of Local Agenda 21 program to teachers and students
Implementation of pilot project “River basin Management”
“Harmonizing National Environmental health Action Plans in the local government” program
Natural and organic food product carnival
An action plan for Domestic Solid Waste Management
Best neighbourhood competition
Family day with Petaling Jaya communities
Committee

Competition of “Neighbourhood of the year”

Social

Career fair festival

Organizing competition designing the park
Consultation with disabled people to develop a draft of action plan which could help to ease their
burden
Chinese new year celebration

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Develop an action plan for neighbourhood to strengthen the spirit among themselves
Safety and security handbook printing for distribution
Neighbourhood cautionary scheme
Exhibition on vandalism prevention and develop and action plan to prevent the vandalism Safety
committee
Fire safety program
Installation of street light in business premises
Providing the security guard service at residents area

INITIATIVES OF BLUEPRINTS AGENDA IN ISKANDAR MALAYSIA, JOHOR

From the approved of blueprints, it is identified that there are 649 initiatives developed. However, the
initiatives are divided into 11 main categories to facilitate the implementation and monitoring. The 11
categories consists of transportation, economy, green, tourism, heritage culture, land use & physical
development, information & communication technology, safety and security, utility, infrastructure & asset
management, creative and social. The summary of the agenda as shown in [Table 4]. Most of the Iskandar
Malaysia blueprints agenda has successfully implemented and part of the agenda is in progress stage.

Table 4: Iskandar Malaysia Johor Blueprints agenda

Programs / Activities Action by

Pinewood Iskandar Malaysia Studios as a hub for creativity
Media@Medini for film production and media
Creative
Iskandar Malaysia Digital Centre of Excellence
Iskandar Malaysia Creative Talent Development Program

Johor Bahru City Centre to develop economic activities in cultural, urban tourism and finance
Nusajaya development which focus on education, entertainment, recreation, state administration,
biotechnology, finance, and tourism
Western Gate Development: developed as a manufacturing hub Economic

Preparation of integrated climate change action plan through green economy, green community
and green environment
Promoting integrated river basin management Green
Capacity building: public awareness, school programs, training and education program, inculcation
through culture
Low carbon action in Felda Taib Andakvillage
School Eco-life challenge
Inauguration on the environmental declaration.
Masterplan on heritage conservation
Street signage installation by having an information of its origins name Heritage
and Culture
Projects on model restoration for royal museum and Bukit Serene palace
Workshop for contractors on how to make renovation and repairs with heritage building

Table 4: Iskandar Malaysia Johor Blueprints agenda (cont’d)

Programs / Activities Action by

Developed web-based application as a platform to promote Iskandar
Malaysia
Training and educational programs on information technology in rural areas
as an opportunity to enhance networking among the communities who
involve in business
Smart and connected city project in Nusajaya to improve the public and Information and Communication
social service Technology
Improvement with current infrastructure especially in the
Improvement with the public and social services
River restoration programs in urban areas
Local plan review by integrating the developed blueprints to the existing local Land Use and Physical
plan Development
In-fill development incentives for flagship zones
Urban design framework formulation and city centre guideline
Establishment of crime and disorder reduction partnership
Developed strategies to increase and augment the security with the Safety and Security
establishment of 942 auxiliary police.
Implementation of integrated CCTV surveillance

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Implementation of management model for foreign worker enclaves

Established the talent development initiatives for youth
Income generating activities for fisherman
Squatter relocation with construction of 2,720 units Social
Constructed the Iskandar Malaysia house
Established new affordable policy for housing
Annual festivals and exhibition such as art festival and Eco-tourism
Development of Johor Bahru Central district urban tourism
Development of causeway link and 2nd link to improve the tourist access via
roads
Create the heritage trail
Improve the transportation service for tourist by constructing the ferry
terminal
Developed for more package of tourism that related to nature Tourism
Promoting the river basin as to support the Eco-tourism potential to connect
visitors with culture, nature and community

Provide bus services (feeder bus) to cater the passenger especially for low
and medium income citizen and in rural areas.
Provide bus services with limited stops that cover on main trunk routes
Provision to provide information for bus routes and timetable
Engagement program between stakeholders and public through awareness Transportation
campaign of road safety
Study in detail regarding on the alignment and pre-engineering for bus rapid
transit
Develop an online platform known as Mobility Management System to allow
visitors and citizens to access their travelling modes
Improving connections between Malaysia and Singapore through Rapid
Transit System
Improve the taxi coverage through service coordination, training and
development
Provision to upgrade the bridge lanes for pedestrian walkway Utility, Infrastructure and Asset
Management
Upgrading the existing number of lanes

SUMMARY FRAMEWORK OF INITIATIVES TAKEN BY THE LOCAL

GOVERNMENT TO REACH THE LOCAL COMMUNITY
From the LA21 approaches adopted in each state and cities, it can be summarized that there are several
initiatives taken by the local government to embrace the local community involvement. The initiatives are
summarized in [Fig 1].

Demonstration Leaflets Distribution Carnival

Consultation Competition/contest

Dialog session Talk/ Exhibition

Festival/ Initiatives by Local Meeting with interest

celebrations Government group

Awareness Teaching and Learning

Campaign Program

Seminar and
Workshop
Briefing Session
Program

Fig. 1: Summary of initiatives taken by local government

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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The initiatives taken is the means for realizing the vision for the future of the community and also to gain
their support which is the key successful of the LA 21 implementation. In addition, the local community
involvement assists to measure the progress of the developed agendas vision. In fact, the encouragement
of local community participation has been widely practiced in activities implemented in many organizations
as a way to prevent public outcry. Besides, it is encouraged to have greater interaction with the local
community in order to allow the public opinion to be included in the agendas provision based on the issue
that has been encountered or may be crucial to do with an improvement. With this effort, the local
community will have a broader perspective towards the importance of the agendas which have significant
contribution to their quality of life. It gives the community to have a sense of ownership throughout the
involvement and helps the government and other stakeholders to benefit the experience and knowledge of
the local community in order to make for better decision in future.

CONCLUSION
The Local Agenda 21 implementation is a strategic implementation program in order to attain the aim for
sustainability. The support and effort from various stakeholders such as Government, Non-Government
Organization, committee, communities and the Council has made the Local Agenda 21 program in
Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru successfully implemented. The used of participatory techniques
or engagement such as discussion with a focus group, having dialogues with communities had assisted in
establishing collaborative relationships among the parties involved. Furthermore, it is also assisting in
contributing realistic ideas for the development of their state and cities. Besides, the activities such as
cleaning and clearing up the area, beautifying river, clean zone competition and many other activities had
brought a significant impact to the people because it gives them knowledge on the importance of
preservation of the environment and the effect of their current activities against the future generation. All
of these approaches is hopefully would give guidance and inspiration to other states in developing and
implementing the Local Agenda 21. As the country is expected to continually grow and the involvement of
LA 21 is a continuous effort, undoubtedly the initiatives adopted in the state and city would contribute to
the development and sustainability in the aspects of economy, social and environment. As for Malaysia, by
implementing the LA 21 stage by stage throughout the nation, this can help to create the awareness
among Malaysian and at the same time helps to develop an environmental responsive nation.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST
There is no conflict of interest.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
None

FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE
This work was financially supported by Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Research University Grant (Vot no:14H36).

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