PUTRAJAYA: The National Physical Planning Council has endorsed two policies to ensure strategic, inclusive and sustainable development in the country.

       The policies approved at the National Physical Council Meeting yesterday were the 4th National Physical Plan and National Coastal Zone Physical Plan.

       Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (pic), who chaired the meeting, said the National Physical Plan was drawn up to pave the way forward for the country’s physical development including the economic, environmental and social aspects.

       The plan outlined three core developments, 11 directions, 39 strategies and 120 actions cover- ing all aspects of physical planning.

       “The implementation requires the involvement of all parties at all planning and development levels, be it federal, state or local government stage,” he said in a state- ment released after the meeting.

       The National Coastal Zone Physical Plan is a strategic plan on land usage, outlining measures such as conservation and resource management along the coastal areas of the peninsula as well as Labuan.

       Ismail Sabri said the plan was formulated taking into account geo-disaster threats such as coastal erosion and climate change that will affect socioeconomic development and the environment.

       A coastal vulnerability index (CVI) will be an important instrument in the plan, he said. CVI is a method used in the decision-making process in long-term coastal planning and management.

       “The meeting also agreed to the setting up of a regional planning committee for states in the northern peninsula. The main function of this committee is to coor- dinate planning issues and advise state governments and local authorities on appropriate develop- ment plans for the region,” he said.

       The Prime Minister said the role of the National Physical Council is to advise on matters relating to town and country planning and to be the platform for collective decisions.