The 2nd India-Malaysia Joint Working Group Meeting on Cooperation in Public Administration and Governance Reforms was held on August 18, 2026, co-chaired by Shri Puneet Yadav, Additional Secretary of DARPG, and Mr. Datuk Dr. Mohd Bakhari bin Ismail, Deputy Director General of Public Service (Development) of Malaysia. The meeting included senior officials from India's Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, Ministry of External Affairs, High Commission of India in Kuala Lumpur, and National Centre for Good Governance.
The JWG reviewed progress since the first meeting held on November 13, 2024, confirming and adopting the minutes of the inaugural meeting. Both sides designated Points of Contact to facilitate coordination and implementation of agreed activities. The meeting discussed capacity-building cooperation under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme, with Malaysia providing positive feedback on academic modules, institutional and field visits, program coordination, and hospitality. Proposed capacity-building programs for 2026 and 2027 cohorts were discussed, with Malaysia welcoming specialized programs for senior officials.
The meeting featured extensive exchange of experiences on public sector modernization and governance reforms. Malaysia shared its public sector transformation approach based on People, Process and Technology with innovation as a key enabler, covering digital government, Artificial Intelligence, cloud services, shared digital infrastructure, cybersecurity, blockchain, data-driven decision-making, and connected government. India presented its Centralized Public Grievance Redressal and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS), described as the world's largest 24x7 digital citizen interface platform for grievance redressal. India also showcased the AI-enabled voice chatbot 'Samadhan Didi' launched on May 30, 2026, which uses conversational AI to provide multilingual, user-friendly responses to citizens.
Malaysia presented the Action Plan for the Malaysia-India Governance Partnership: 2027-2029 Strategic Roadmap, which establishes a Governance & Implementation Framework and creates a three-year roadmap for implementing areas under the Memorandum of Understanding. Both sides appreciated the support extended by DARPG, NCGG, and the High Commission of India, agreeing to identify concrete, practical, and outcome-oriented areas of cooperation while committing to deepen institutional engagement, knowledge sharing, and capacity building to strengthen public institutions and improve service delivery.