University of Malaya

Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Department of International and Strategic Studies
AUEA 2308 Non-State Actors in International Relations
Essay on UN Agency in Malaysia

Submitted by:

Kiana Katherine Mercado Porras

NEX150423

The vision to protect and uplift childrens rights has always been the core goal of the
United Nations Childrens Fund. With their wide range of connection and network all over the
world, UNICEF is the leading organization in 190 countries in this field. UNICEF Chapters are
aligning their projects to the current situation of their home countries for them to be truly
efficient in addressing transpiring issues. Although adapting different frameworks, all of them
are directed to one particular vision -- to improve the living quality of every child in the world.

Believing that children have a right to develop until they reach their utmost potential 1,
UNICEF-Malaysia has been an active proponent of programs that will assure the safety and
development of the children sector in the country. They have been achieving notable
improvements in health, nutrition, water and sanitation, formal and informal education, as well
as welfare services for children in rural and poor urban areas (www.unicef.org/malaysia).
Acknowledging that there are still much to be done, UNICEF-Malaysia is reaching different key
players in the country to promote and implement the vision of their advocacy.

With an active partnership with the people and Government of Malaysia since 1954,
UNICEF-Malaysia is doing a remarkable progress. One of their strategies is to plan projects vis-vis to the plan of the government. Various non-governmental organizations and private
companies also support their projects.

1 It is possible to give every child a good start in life. Our aim is to ensure that
every child is given the opportunity to develop to their full human potential.
UNICEF Malaysia

In their 2008-2010 Country Program, UNICEF-Malaysia desired to provide access to

data and information about various factors affecting the children sector of the country so as to
create a firm ground for policies that could address the remaining social issues concerning the
children. Positively, they were able to spark significant changes in health, education, and
protection aspects.

Disseminating accurate and precise information about child protection is one tier of their
2008-2010 Country Program. Coordinating with different ministries such as the Ministry of
Women, Family, and Community Development and Ministry of Education, UNICEF-Malaysia
was set to reinvent the awareness campaign on child protection in the country.

Maximizing human resources through education is one approach that UNICEF-Malaysia

has been adopting throughout the years. This does not only mean giving education to the target
beneficiary, but also to the people who can assist them in the said project. Aiming to equip the
people with proper capacity to provide primary, secondary, and tertiary interventions in child
protection2, the organization, together with the Ministry of Women, Family, and Community
Development, has been developing a framework for Social Work Competency Standards. This
structure is considered essential as it will ensure the quality of social workers who will approach
child protection issues in the first-hand level. Given that they are the people who have a chance
2 Primary prevention activities are directed to the general population and attempt
to stop maltreatment before it occurs. Secondary prevention activities with a highrisk focus are offered to populations that have one or more risk factors associated
with child maltreatment, such as poverty, parental substance abuse, young parental
age, parental mental health concerns, and parental or child disabilities. Tertiary
prevention activities focus on families where maltreatment has already occurred
(indicated) and seek to reduce the negative consequences of the maltreatment and
to prevent its recurrence. (www.childwelfare.gov)

to be in direct contact with the children, they should be geared with proper knowledge to address
the situation efficiently.
They have also given trainings to teachers, school administrations, parents, and students
through the UNICEF Safe School Program. The target is to educate the people about how to
sustain a safe learning environment, specifically a bully-free place, for the children. This is in
coordination with the Ministry of Education and Help University. They are also in partnership
with the Ministry of Health in addressing the HIV and AIDS issues in the country 3. Some of their
research works4 also became perusal for policy changes. The Convention on the Rights of the
Child (CRC) is the ground of almost all projects of the organization.

All of these milestones can be connected on how they executed their 2008-2010 Country
Program. The presence of coordination between other civil societies, government ministries, and
UNICEF-Malaysia in the implementation of projects is also a key factor. With the participation
of every possible player, the execution of each plan became more plausible and efficient.

After accomplishing various achievements, the organization aims to sustain their effect
by aligning their 2011-2015 Country Program with the direction of the Tenth Malaysian Plan
(10MP), which is the key development strategy and planning instrument of Malaysia
(www.unicef.org/malaysia). This is also in line with the Vision 2020 of Malaysia.

3 They were able to produce a joint report focusing on feminization of the HIV
epidemic in Malaysia entitled Women and Girls Confronting HIV and AIDS
4 Malaysian Child Index, the Child-Injury Database, and the 2009 Malaysia Situation
Analysis

The Federation of Malaysia, being home to multiethnic and multicultural population, has
been focusing on developing their social and economic standing since then. Together with other
organizations and UNICEF-Malaysia, the country was able to achieve milestones that are at par
with some developed countries. A remarkable reduction in child and maternal mortality has been
noted. The maternal mortality ratio (MMR) halved between 1957 and 1970 when it fell from
around 280 to 141 per 100,000 live births. By the 1990s, the MMR declined further and for
2005-2009, it is reported at 29 per 100,000 live births (the readjusted MMR is 31 per 100,000
live births for 2008). The lifetime risk of maternal death in Malaysia is 1 in 1,200
(www.unicef.org/malaysia).
They are also improving the quality of primary and basic education by innovating the
curriculum. They have included technology in their way of teaching and they are reaching kids
from rural and poor urban areas to propagate information.

Investing heavily on the development of their human capital is still one strategy that they
want to embrace. Believing that to achieve the Vision 2020, which is becoming a fully developed
country in the next five years, producing and sustaining quality human resources should be a
focus. And given that the children of today will be the leaders of tomorrow, UNICEF-Malaysia
supports the development programs of the government.

Nonetheless, they still need to narrow down the disparity of development transpiring in
the country. There are still issues that need to be address especially in Sabah, Sarawak and other
areas in Peninsular Malaysia.

The widening gap between the marginalized and the rich is expanding, making it
challenging for the organization and involved actors to sustain all projects they have started.
Access to proper education is still one facet that still needs to be addressed. According to
Malaysia Millennium Development Goals Report, around 125,000 Malaysian children are out of
school and do not have access to education. This figure does not include refugees,
undocumented, and stateless children. Although much has been achieved in the aspect of
education, for example, the presence of information and communication technology in the
educational curriculum, this aspect is only felt in urban areas and has not reach the rural places.
In addition, according to Malaysia Social Welfare Department, reported child abuse cases have
increased from 1,800 per year in 2005 to 2,789 in 2009. Moreover, 5,955 children in Malaysia
were charged with criminal offences in 2006, the majority aged 16 and 17.

Acknowledging that there are still pressing challenges transpiring, UNICEF-Malaysia

will divert its focus on improving child protection, education and health, HIV and AIDS issues,
and social partnerships and policy this 2011-2015 Country Program. Some of these facets are
also part of their previous country program. However, it still calls for more attention, therefore,
they included it again in the framework.

In this structure, UNICEF-Malaysia also wants to address the issues being faced by
undocumented children such as birth registration. They are also seeking for the assistance of the
government in this particular matter. Another is the improvement of awareness campaign about
child protection through modules for sectoral training curricula including social welfare, health,
education, labor, justice, police and defense (www.unicef.org/malaysia).

Another aspect is the access to education not just for the marginalized children but also
for the indigenous, children with special needs, migrants, and refugees. They are also pushing for
a policy dialogue to improve the early childhood care and education in the national level.
They also advocate and strengthen methods, techniques and programs for adolescentfriendly reproductive health services in Malaysia (www.unicef.org/malaysia). Expanding HIV
and AIDS counseling, screening, testing, and referrals in health centers is one vision of the
country program. This is aligned with the national strategic plan for HIV and AIDS 2011-2015.

UNICEF-Malaysia also calls for continuous support on researches, data gathering, and
information dissemination to strengthen the firm basis they built in the national system before.
They aim to focus on collecting data about child abuse, children with disabilities, and most at
risk youth. The end goal of this aspect is to influence national policies and national programs.
They seek to use the data gathered and present it to the administration to provide them a better
view of who is the target and what they truly needs. This is going to be vital in creating programs
that are more meaningful for the youth and policies that will be genuinely beneficial for the
children. The organization will not stop at doing research but will also forward recommendations
and referrals to the administration to ensure the effectiveness of their work.

UNICEF-Malaysia also envisions assisting other civil society organizations that are in
line in this kind of field. Supporting and developing other civil society organizations could make
the process of dissemination and implementation faster as more human resources are equipped to
do such work. Lastly, the organization also wanted to improve the Corporate Social

Responsibility of existing companies in the country. Their target is to instill in these private
institutions the importance of supporting and investing on the children. They could help in the
aspect of funding and donations-in-kind.

UNICEF-Malaysia has a good relationship with non-governmental organizations, private

sectors, youth, media and celebrities, and most especially the government. The organization
welcomes assistance from local non-governmental organizations and from international youth
groups or communities. Most of their funds also come from private companies, institutions, and
individuals. The youth has also an active role to play when they help in disseminating
information about the advocacy of the organization through public debates or social networking
sites. The media also works hand in hand with UNICEF-Malaysia. In fact, the National
Ambassadors of UNICEF-Malaysia are the famous animated characters, Upin and Ipin. Lastly,
UNICEF-Malaysia considers the government as their main partner in their projects. They have
been in coordination with different ministries and administrations of the country during the
planning and execution of plans. This is very evident in their 2008-2010 Country Program
wherein various programs were implemented in partnership with various government ministries.

It is safe to say that there is a positive relationship between the government of Malaysia
and this particular UN Agency. With the latter considering the government as their main partner
and the presence of collaborative works and projects, it is a sign that cooperation has been
transpiring since then. UNICEF-Malaysia has also been considering the plans and frameworks
being forwarded by the government in their programs. In their Country Programs, namely the
2008-2010 and the 2011-2015, both structures incorporated the plans of the government. It is

beneficial to both parties as they are able to achieve their own goals through positive perspective.
UNICEF-Malaysia considers itself as an independent agency but acknowledges that every
assistance that they could acquire could be beneficial to them, whether is it from other non-state
actor or from the government. This particular UN Agency also maintains a wide range of
network with other non-state actors as they also consider them as partners in different projects.

Some non-state actors or some UN agencies may choose to adopt a different approach
concerning their relationship with the government. In the case of UNICEF-Malaysia, they see
cooperation with the administration as a positive factor for them. Working with the government
made their projects more feasible and made their impact more powerful as they were able to
touch more people and invite more actors to partake in their advocacies. Although they cannot
avoid having conflict with administration due to differences in perspective, we can assume that
this UN Agency has the perfect amount of influence over the officials. With their capacity to
provide researches for policy changes and their capability to engage in discussions, this is a
positive sign that their relationship is growing rather than diminishing. Their skill to adapt with
the framework being forwarded by the government became their important advantage in
maintaining a good connection with the administration.

As for the case of other UN Agencies in Malaysia, the country is basically enthusiastic to
coordinate with them as long as they are also willing to settle with what the government wants to
implement. Moreover, if the country will gain benefit from the cooperation, most probably, they
will be open to collaboration and partnerships. The Federation of Malaysia, just like any other
country, wants to maintain its control over the country therefore, the presence of other IGOs are

welcome as long as it will not impede the way they manages the system. The country
acknowledges the importance of coordinating with such non-state actor but they will always
value their control over their territory. Intergovernmental Organizations such as the United
Nations and their agencies can be active in the picture if they will coordinate rather than question
the government structure. Influencing through pressure is and will always be a choice but
cooperation would always be the preferred move. In addition, the nature and the character of the
intergovernmental organization would always play a vital role in establishing the network. If it is
about development and progress, such as what UNICEF-Malaysia is, they have a higher
possibility to have a good relationship with the administration, as they will be valuable during
the implementation of government plans. On the other hand, if your nature is forwarding heavy
intervention and drastic change, it would be likely a rough road to coordinate with the officials.
Reiterating the previous lines stated, governments would always prefer to hold and maintain the
system they control.

Using the case of UNICEF-Malaysia, they were able to establish a strong and stable
relationship with the government because of their openness to consider the plans of the
administration as part of their framework as well. During their initial stages, they have already
identified the government as their main partners, making it easy for them to seek for assistance
and support for every project. They can tap the appropriate ministries for their ventures and they
can acquire support from other institutions due to their good connection with the government as
well. Unlike other non-state actors that chose to challenge the system, UNICEF-Malaysia was
able to harmonize with how the government works without sacrificing their advocacy. They still

test the system by seeking policy changes, but somehow, they can do it covertly and without
becoming too aggressive.

The need to weigh properly when to defy or cooperate will always be a challenge for any
kind of intergovernmental organizations especially in countries that really value the importance
of sovereignty. It will always depend on what role they want to play in the system. Governments
would likely value their presence if their goals are aligned with theirs, but it will always be a
challenge if the cause is about drastic modifications and intrusions.

References
Country Office Annual Report 2010. (n.d.). Retrieved from UNICEF-Malaysia website:
http://www.unicef.org/malaysia/Malaysia_Annual_Report_2010_Final_Edit_260811.pdf
Official Website of Economic Planning Unit - UNICEF. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.epu.gov.my/en/unicef
UNICEF - Malaysia | Protecting children's rights. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.unicef.org/malaysia/
UNICEF | Childrens Rights & Emergency Relief Organization. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.unicef.org/