Govt-private sector partnership vital

BUDGET allocations must be spent within the stipulated period to derive the desired benefits and the associated multiplier effects to chart a nation's economic development along the planned path over a projected period. In the case of the Brunei Darussalam the objective is Vision 2035 by which time the nation expects to see:

the accomplishments of its well-educated, highly-skilled people;

a very high quality of life; and,

a dynamic and sustainable economy (diversifying away from dependence on oil and gas).

And to ensure holistic development within the Melayu Islam Beraja (MIB) or Malay Muslim Monarchy Philosophy, the development envisioned is not purely physical but also spiritual to mould citizens who are united in:

loyalty to His Majesty the Sultan and the country;

belief in the values of Islam; and,

maintaining traditional tolerance and social harmony.

These objectives are within the sphere of achievement provided there is constant monitoring of projects to ensure that they are completed within schedule and not left incomplete. Evidently there have been regular shortfalls in completing development projects in the past.

His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, in his titah officially opening of the sixth session of the State Legislative Council last Thursday, noting these delays in development projects, called on the relevant parties to explore and study the causes of such "failures" and for the government to put an end to them.

His Majesty said it was essential for government officials and private developers to investigate in depth the causes of the delays so that they can be identified, learnt from and not repeated. "We need to design faster procedures to overcome any delay or failure (in order) to meet our targets as these delays will have negative consequences on the country," said His Majesty.

His Majesty, pointing to Brunei weathering the effects of the current global financial crisis and keeping its economy intact and stable, said this was achieved through prudent, healthy spending without resort to loans supported by an increase in world demand for crude oil that helped the country's revenues cover government spending.

However, His Majesty also stressed that the government was working towards diversifying its economy beyond its current dependency on oil and gas. Oil and gas represent a depleting resource which will one day no longer be available to the nation. That is when education to develop a vibrant human resource will be able to help sustain Bruneians in the same high or even higher quality of life with the development of a mature services sector as well as exploitation of its rich renewable resource — its biodiversity.

His Majesty stressed the need to maintain balance by paying attention to both physical and spiritual development. Referring to countries that focused only on physical development he noted whatever development achieved was negated by quarrels, crime, drugs, corruption and other negative elements. "All this can make the development achieved meaningless," said His Majesty explaining why he did tire of speaking on education "a lifelong investment which cannot be neglected".

As for ensuring that development projects are carried according to schedule, it is the government and its officers who wield the power to either withhold or facilitate that must take the major portion of the responsibility for delays. And in this respect, there is no place for "Little Napoleons" who generate red tape by putting obstacles in the path of private sector entrepreneurs and so cause delays in projects. Success is a shared achievement where a facilitating government machinery can unleash the dynamic energy of a vibrant private sector and, with the resultant synergy generated by this dynamic public-private partnership, there is no reason why Brunei Darussalam cannot realise the goal of Vision 2035 and beyond.