Giving the public their say

26 World Health • 49th Year, No. 1, Jonuory-Februory 1996 Giving the public their say Jamilah Hashim, Andrew Kiyu, & Stalin Hardin The residents of the Malaysian city of Kuching, capital of Sarawak, were asked to list the five things that they (a) hated most, (b) liked most about their city, and (c) wished for most for it. The findings of this survey were used to complement the ideas of official policy-makers and planners. Market-place in Kuching, Malaysia. By the year 2000, a majority of the world's population will be living in cities. The Healthy Cities Project is increasingly being recognized as a means of grappling with the human-induced crises which today, more than ever before, affect city dwellers. The challenge facing the project is to find ways of achieving a better quality of urban life. Kuching City is the capital of the state of Sarawak, one of the thirteen States that make up the Federation of Malaysia. The city is divided into two municipalities, Kuching North and Kuching South, each adminis- tered by its own mayor. It has a total land area of 430.5 square kilometres, and its multi-ethnic and multi- religious population of 252 000 live together in harmony. Rapid industri- alization is taking place but despite economic prosperity and a strong Western influence, the residents still preserve and observe their rich Eastern social and cultural values. In July 1994, WHO invited Kuching City to join other cities worldwide in the Healthy Cities Project. The State Government accepted the invitation, and the Healthy City - Kuching Project was officially launched by the Chief Minister of Sarawak. The specific aim of the project is to make steady improvements in the quality of life of the citizens. Health is viewed holistically, that is to say, there is a general awareness that it will be directly affected by the eco- nomic, social and physical environ- ment. Consequently, improvements in health become the responsibility of all those agencies whose activities impinge on the environment. World Health • 49th Year, No. 1, Jonuory February 1996 What the public want It is widely accepted that the views of ordinary people are essential and must be taken into account when plans are being drawn up that will affect their lives. Nevertheless, those views are rarely canvassed because it is not an easy task. Furthermore, policy-makers and planners often think that they know best what peo- ple want and what measures are good for them. So they usually formulate plans without first getting the opinions of the people who will be affected. During the development of the Healthy City Plan for Kuching, a Technical Committee was formed in which the two City Councils played the leading role. Its members were made up of officers from relevant government agencies in the city. The that the citizens "hate most" in order to ensure a continuous improvement in the quality of life for the citizens. Hates and likes The responses were arbitrarily categorized into economic, social and physical dimensions. Generally, a majority of the "hate most" items were in the physical dimension, and especially concerned public trans- port, where the number of "hates" heavily outweighed the "likes" . This is an area that definitely needed to be looked into. What citizens liked most about the city were its landscaped gardens, with plenty of open areas and parks that are avail- able for relaxation and recreation, as well as the many shops and night markets. There is an apparent need to provide more of such facilities, first draft that was drawn ~--~;:::::::;;::;;;: up was based on the views of government officers and was considered inadequate because it lacked the input of views and ideas from ordinary citizens. The com- mittee needed to know what ordinary people loved and hated about their own city. To find out, they de- vised a simple, interviewer- based questionnaire for people who live in the city and people from outside who frequently visit and use the various facilities. They were asked to list five 27 Some of the findings of this survey were unexpected. For in- stance, it had not occurred to the policy-makers and planners that public transport was one of the main concerns of the people, or that they actively hated the present public transport system. Simple though it was, the survey was able to provide useful inputs to the policy-makers and planners in assessing and diag- nosing the needs of the community. Such inputs are essential for drawing up proper plans which will con- tribute to meeting the needs of the public and ensuring the acceptability of those plans. The q~ality and the variability of responses are depen- dent on the background and diversity of the people interviewed. There- fore, getting a good cross-section of the people is essential to the success of such a survey. things that they (a) hated A letter from the Malaysion Ministry of Health declaring Kuching the Thanks to its usefulness and simplicity, the survey was extended to other urban areas of the State, with an additional question: "What do you feel you can do to make your town a better place to live in?" The findings of this broader survey will be used as plans are developed for the other urban areas. Thus the Healthy City - Kuching Project will benefit not just those who live in the city; planning concepts that emerge from it will benefit all the urban dwellers of Sarawak. • most, (b) liked most about cleanest and most beautiful city in Malaysia. their city, and (c) wished for most for it. The findings of this survey were then used to comple- ment the ideas of the official policy- makers and planners. This anonymous, non-threatening survey managed to gather valuable information. On balance, Kuching citizens had many things that they liked about the city and relatively few things that they hated. This is probably a reflection of the economic prosperity and peace that they enjoy. Nonetheless, it is very important to deal adequately with those things and to improve as well as maintain existing ones. Overall, what the citizens most wish for are improved public trans- port, more strategically located shopping malls and even more parks and open spaces. This survey proved the citizens to be highly responsible people, in that they were willing to give constructive rather than destruc- tive criticisms and suggestions. Their views have duly been incorpo- rated into the Healthy City - Kuching Plan. Or }ami/oh Hashim is Desk OHicer for the Kuching Healthy City Project; he is also Medical OHicer of Health, Urban Health Unit, State Health Department Sarawak, where Or Andrew Kiyu is Deputy Director of Health Services (Public Health} and Or Stalin Hardin is State Health Director. The Department's address is Tun Abang Haji Openg Road, 93590 Kuching, Sarawak, Malasia.