Surrender and re-alienation approval process: a review of emerging issues and way forward from evidence base

Abstract

Surrender and re-alienation is a land development mechanism in Malaysia that allows the modification of conditions, restrictions and categories of land that can be done simultaneously with subdivision or amalgamation. However, due to several issues, the mechanism is faced with challenges to ensure that the application approval succeeds in timely manner. The delay of approval has prevented land owner to initiate development and raise numerous perceptions among the public regarding the efficiency and effectiveness of land administrative agencies in facilitating and expediting land development process. Improving the efficiency and effectiveness of government service delivery is challenging but achieving the public satisfaction is crucial. This paper reviews the theoretical perspectives of the issues and challenges that must be improved by the surrender and re-alienation approval process towards an efficient and effective public service delivery in land development. It was found that there are five major issues in the approval process that need to be improved: (i) Procedure; (ii) Timeframe; (iii) Coordination; (iv) Capacity Building; and (v) Documentation. These serve as a foundation for further research to improve the approval process in regard to surrender and re-alienation mechanism particularly in the state of Johor.