Authors:
Faridah Ibrahim
1
;
Siti Maziha Mustapha
1
;
Kho Suet Nie
2
;
Amli Hazlin Ahmad Mokhtar
1
and
Dil Froz Jan Salem Shah
1
Affiliations:
1
Infrastructure University Kuala Lumpur,Kajang, Malaysia
;
2
Taylors University, Malaysia, Malaysia
Keyword(s):
Stakeholders, Engagement, External Public, Government Programs, Participation.
Abstract:
The implementation of government’s program is vital to the development and economic growth of a country.
Stakeholder engagement theory posits that the successful implementation of policies and programs will depend
on how well the programs are accepted by both internal and external stakeholders. This study looks into the
external stakeholders, namely the citizens of Malaysia and their engagement towards government programs.
This study is carried out using survey research method via self-administered questionnaires on 361 respon-
dents in the Klang Valley, Malaysia. Research questions were formulated to answer the following: to what
extent is the level of participation among the stakeholders in government programs; to identify what factors
that are related to stakeholders’ engagement; and to determine which predictors contribute most to stakeholder
engagement. From the survey, it was found that several important factors were related to the stakeholders’
engagement towards gove
rnment programs. Among the correlates were media dependence, governmental
proximity, leadership, community integration and perception of current issues. The study found that governmental proximity and leadership are the most important predictors of stakeholder engagement. The study
implied that strong participation empowered the people to be engaged either physically or virtually towards
the implementation of the government programs. It is recommended that future government programs include
peoples’ participation in terms of idea contributions and decision making for the successful implementation of
the programs.
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