Malaysia's policy on sustainable development is clearly enunciated in the 7th Malaysia Plan (GOM 1996). The Plan which also describes the measures taken to emphasize sustainable development during earlier Malaysia Plan periods, outlines new measures that will be initiated during the 7th Malaysia Plan (1996 - 2000) to enhance Malaysia's ability to develop sustainably.
The 7th Malaysia Plan states that there is a need to strengthen environmental database and information systems to "…clearly delineate the relationship between the environment and sustainable development." (7th Malaysia Plan: page 615) and that the development of indicators of sustainable development will be initiated, to provide a yardstick for monitoring and evaluating progress towards sustainable development in Malaysia.
The Brundlant Commission on Environment and Development elegantly defines sustainable development as "……..development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs" (WCED 1987). There is however no general consensus on an operational definition of sustainability. This is partly because sustainable development is seen as a dynamic process, not a static condition that can be clearly described. Also, the concept of sustainable development relates to a large extent, to norms and values which tend to spring from cultural traditions, and relates as well to different geoenvironments and is thus locality specific.
Chapter 40 of Agenda 21 of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) encourages countries and international organizations to develop sustainable development indicators, in order to assess performance towards achieving the objectives of sustainable development. Recommendations were also made, in Agenda 21, that the development of these indicators be harmonized with coordination provided by United Nations organizations. Policies that would promote sustainable development described in the 7th Malaysia Plan are inspired by the UNCED process and Agenda 21. Although Malaysia participates in UN sponsored initiatives to develop sustainable development indicators, it has chosen to pursue their formulation on its own so that methodologies used and the indicators chosen reflect closely the capability and actual needs of the country. Indicators and indices must be matched with the needs of nations in order to manage the environment and development within defined policy frameworks.