CHECK IT OUT! APASWE : No. 27 (2017)

No. 27 (2017) from President Office November 2017
Report on The Progress and The Development of Social Work Bill in Malaysia.

Y.M. Haizzan,
Universiti Sains Malaysia

Since 1930s professional Social Work was introduced by the British Colonial Administration. While in 1946, Department of Social Welfare took place and mainly to capture the social issues regarding migrant, juvenile delinquency, poverty, protection homes for women and girls, and residential care for the disabled in Malaysia.

On 1st October 2017, it was great to hear that the revived Social Workers Bill aimed at legislating social workers, will be reviewed in the Cabinet meeting. The announcement held through a press conference by the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. Meanwhile earlier, in January 2017, Minister at Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development said that Putrajaya is looking forward in reviving the shelved Bill, after the proposed law which started somewhere in 2010, was not tabled in the respective Parliament due to resistance for some reasons. The minister added that there is no definitive timeline to table the Bill, but it will be one of three main legislative proposals by her ministry for this year (Malay Mail, 2017).

In the other hand, Malaysian Association of Social Workers (MASW) is extremely pleased and encouraged with the latest statement by the Deputy Prime Minister on the revived Social Work Profession Bill.

“It has been a long and roller coaster journey for the working team in preparing the Bill and the related regulations since the Cabinet approved the drafting of a Social Workers Act back in 2010. Now the DPM has made the commitment, the working team will be working harder in the next few week to tighten any loose end before the Bill can be presented by the Minister of Women, Family and Community Development to the Cabinet (MASW, 2017)”

It is believed, once the Bill take place, it will be an excessive revolutionary for the expansion of the social work profession in Malaysia. Throughout the excursion, several MASW members have been participating in the technical committee and the working team on the Bill too.