The recognition marked the third consecutive year the MBSA has won the Sustainable City award since it was introduced in 2008.
For this year, the MBSA came in second with a 90.09% score while the administrative capital of Putrajaya emerged tops with a 94.12% score.
The conferment of the sustainable city title was based on evaluation done by the Town and Country Planning Department in Peninsular Malaysia via the Malaysia Urban Indicator Network (MURNInet) Programme.
MURNInet is an application to create a database in digital form that can measure the sustainability of a city.
Through MURNInet, local authorities would be able to identify the problem, the quality of an urban settlement and present proposals to resolve and improve the level of services to residents.
The assessment was conducted using several indicators like demographic population in a city, utilities and infrastructure that are efficient and sufficient to ensure the residents’ well-being, provision of community and recreation facilities, sociology and social impact to ensure quality of life, management and strong financial standing.
The Sustainable City 2010 Award was presented by Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Wira Chor Chee Heung in conjunction with World Town Planning Day 2010.
Shah Alam mayor Datuk Mazalan Md Noor was on hand to receive the award.
“With the award, MBSA will strive to maintain and enhance several indicators to achieve a more sustainable level and make Shah Alam an ideal place to live, work and raise a family,” he said.
“As the local authority, the MBSA will continue to work and cooperate with all parties, including residents’ representative council (MPP), residents associations, government agencies, public and private sectors and NGOs to ensure the city is always prosperous, and that its residents can live in peace, harmony and with mutual respect for each another.”
The MBSA was also presented a five-star rating in the Malaysian Government Website and Portal Evaluation by the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC).
The five-star rating for the council’s website was based on the content and information that is regularly updated and current.
The MBSA’s website also has web-friendly features, is easy to browse, posts relevant information like department/ division contacts and client charter, has online payment channels (e-payment), and is linked to myGov and other government agencies websites.
Mazalan added that the MBSA, through its Information and Communication Technology Department, plans to introduce several more applications and approaches to facilitate the Shah Alam community’s access to information and services relevant to the council, including the recent introduction of the Shah Alam Kita portal.
By The Star
