HIGHER EDUCATION AND CIVIC DEVELOPMENT IN MALAYSIA

After 57 years of independence, Malaysia's process of nation-building it's multi-cultural society is now geared towards national solidarity to ensure long term political stability and sustainability. Nation-building refers to the process of constructing a national identity using the power of the state in relation to policies, institutions, and campaigns to facilitate efforts toward social harmony and political stability as a prerequisite to development and economic growth. Higher education is also entrusted to facilitate civic development through its institutions which aim to produce good citizens, knowledgeable workforce for long term socio-economic development of the country. A research was done to identify and measure the attributes of Malaysian citizenship among university undergraduates in relation to civic identity and global citizenship. Through a presentation of it's findings, this paper will discuss the complexities of a nation-building, especially ethnic relations, in Malaysia.