Selangor Malaysia – On June 27th, 2024 in Selangor, Malaysia, the EU and Government of Malaysia, led by the Malaysia Green Technology Corporation (MGTC) held a workshop to define new approaches for the Green Government Procurement in Malaysia. The workshop supported by the EU funded SWITCH-Asia programme is part of the ongoing Technical Advisory on “Sustainable/Green Public Procurement” and follows up on a Green Public Procurement Expert meeting held in Bangkok in March 2024.
Speaking on the occasion of the workshop, Mr Malik Atan, Green Government Procurement Technical Specialist, MGTC, welcomed participants from Government of Malaysia. He explained that the objective of this event was to chart paths for two proposals: ‘GGP Expansion to the State Governments and Local Authorities’, and also ‘Implementation of GGP Works in the Government Building Construction Activities’. Both project proposals are intended to support the implementation of the National Green Technology Policy and 12th Malaysia Plan.
Dr Hari Ramalu Ragavan, Malaysia GPP expert, explained the background of this workshop, and how it had originated from discussions held with the SWITCH-Asia team in March in Bangkok. He presented the overview of the status of GPP in South East Asia, where Malaysia is considered as leading by example. He explained the importance of the two proposals and how this workshop presented an opportunity to contribute to development of clear output and outcome of the proposed projects to support the need and plans of the participating government agencies.
Mr Sanjay Kumar, Senior GPP expert, presented how GPP can be a powerful tool to reach sustainability targets and transform markets. He shared insights from other international experiences and underlined that Malaysia was paving the way for GGP in the ASEAN. Developing a solid policy framework, creating institutional mechanisms, expanding the scope and scale of Green/Sustainable Public Procurement and creating space for sustainability in the public finance system are essential elements that contribute to strengthening and elevating GPP. These elements go hand in hand with a professionalisation of the procurement profession and the computerisation of the procurement system.
The event gathered 40 decision makers and technical personnel from various government agencies. They actively discussed the scope, objective, methodologies, output and intended outcome of the two topics. The participants provided feedback on the need, challenges and opportunities in these proposal from their perspective.
In 2024, the SWITCH-Asia Policy Support Component published the Asian Experiences in GPP report, which covered Malaysia, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and China. The Assessment of Sustainable/ Green Public Procurement in Malaysia was also recently published. In 2022, the SWITCH-Asia Regional Policy Advocacy Component, implemented by UNEP, furthermore, published three reports reviewing the status of GPP in three Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia, Philippines, and Indonesia.
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The European Union – Malaysia Cooperation Background:
The EU and Malaysia have increased cooperation and exchange of best practices in bilateral and multilateral fora to resolve climate, energy, environmental and biodiversity challenges. EU-Malaysia cooperation on environment will focus on the development of renewable energies, among others renewable hydrogen, and energy efficiency, as well as green technologies and circular economy for the transition toward low carbon societies.
Regional cooperation through ASEAN-EU Cooperation:
The EU and Malaysia cooperate at regional level inter alia through the ASEAN-EU High-Level Dialogue on Environment and Climate Change on issues such as greenhouse gas emissions reduction (e.g. methane), circular economy, plastics pollution and forest biodiversity.
There is also a Green Team Europe Initiative launched by the European Union last year in partnership with South East Asia. The Enhanced Regional EU-ASEAN Dialogue Instrument (E-READI) supports dialogue on a wide range of topics, including the environment. At the EU-ASEAN Commemorative Summit, both sides also established an EU-ASEAN Energy Dialogue.
Contact:
For more information on EU SWITCH-Asia activities in S/GPP, contact:
Ms. Elodie Maria-Sube, EU Policy Development and Stakeholder Engagement Expert
SWITCH-Asia Policy Support Component
Learn more here.
