Arena of world-class ideas and insights
THE UNITED Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Northern Corridor Implementation Authority (NCIA) have agreed to permanently set up a Pangkor Dialogue Secretariat with Institut Darul Ridzuan.
Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir said the secretariat would focus on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as established in the United Nations Agenda 2030.
He said this represented another milestone for the Pangkor Dialogue, which had grown in strength since its inception in 2012, and had been well received locally and internationally.
The secretariat also reflects the commitment to ensure the Pangkor Dialogue would evolve to become an authority of reference for sustainable development.
“I would love to imagine that the Pangkor Dialogue has ‘arrived’. It has moved beyond a platform to exchange ideas, views and opinions.
“It has even graduated from being a mere talking shop to an arena with world-class thoughts and insights,” said Zambry in his speech during the closing ceremony of the two-day dialogue yesterday.
He later told reporters that this year’s Pangkor Dialogue saw increased participation by youth, many of whom shared their dreams and aspirations at the Perak Festival of Ideas (FOI).
FOI, a satellite event for the Pangkor Dialogue, collected 10,000 ideas through more than 70 programmes.
“We gave the opportunity for Perakians to give us their ideas.
“It is vital to encourage them to do so, as it can be very beneficial to the state.
“We will look deeper at the ideas collected, and see which are the ones we can use as guidelines or have implemented by the state government,” he said.
He noted that FOI also gained recognition in The Malaysia Book of Records for the most number of events organised in a week.
He said the satellite events would be extended next year, in view of the overwhelming response that saw the city experiencing massive traffic congestion, with many hotels fully booked during the FOI, held between last Wednesday and today throughout Perak.
Zambry also highlighted that the dialogue was attended by many captains of industries, as well as Federal Government officials and ministers, making it a dynamic platform for innovative ideas and thoughts.
He said many ideas, proposals and views were gathered from the speakers and participants, including on infrastructure, connectivity and digital economy.
“What is most important is that we want to take a step further to look into the SDGs within the local context,” he said.
The Pangkor assemblyman added that Perak had moved beyond collaboration and partnership and was even a step ahead of Industry 4.0.
Industry 4.0 introduces what is called the “smart factory”, in which cyber-physical systems monitor the physical processes of the factory and make decentralised decisions.
Zambry said the Silver State must further challenge itself to create a new future with the Pangkor Dialogue.
The dialogue saw an impressive array of speakers getting together to deliberate on issues concerning sustainable economic development and ways to address them.
With the theme “Making the Future: Innovative Pathways to Sustainable Development”, this year’s Pangkor Dialogue sought to explore ideas and develop answers to unprecedented challenges facing modern global society.