Credit : Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's X
KUALA LUMPUR, October 22, 2026 – Efforts to strengthen the understanding of nationhood, national identity and the spirit of togetherness must continue to be intensified, especially among young Malaysians who will inherit the country’s leadership, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said today.
Anwar made the call after chairing the Dewan Kenegaraan Governance Board Meeting No. 3/2026, which reviewed the implementation and planning of programmes under the Akademi Kenegaraan Malaysia (AKM), the national academy for nationhood under the Prime Minister’s Office.
“Today I chaired the Dewan Kenegaraan Governance Board Meeting No. 3/2026 to examine the implementation and planning of the Akademi Kenegaraan Malaysia (AKM) programmes, particularly among youths as the heirs to the nation’s leadership,” he said in a post shared on X.
“Efforts to strengthen the understanding of nationhood, national identity and the spirit of togetherness must continue to be empowered in order to build a strong nation-state, rooted in shared history, values and aspirations,” he added.
The post was accompanied by a photograph of the meeting, showing the Prime Minister at the head of a long conference table with ministers and senior officials seated on both sides.
https://x.com/anwaribrahim/status/2113243993395892513
According to Harapan Madani, the meeting reviewed AKM’s programmes for this year and the next, and was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek and Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Khaled Nordin.
Before the meeting began, Anwar also launched Jejak-Jejak Negara Bangsa (Traces of the Nation-State), an exclusive book on nationhood published by AKM, Bernama reported. The academy described the book as a visual and narrative record of important moments in the country’s history, the sacrifices of earlier leaders and the evolution of Malaysia’s identity from the pre-independence era to its modernisation.
AKM said the book highlights the foundations of nation-building based on justice, integrity, socio-cultural diversity and unity among Malaysians of all races. It will be distributed free of charge to major libraries, institutions of higher learning, diplomatic missions and selected public agencies as a reference for discourse on nationhood.
The academy said launching the book at the governance board meeting symbolised the government’s continuing commitment to ensuring that the agenda of nurturing nationhood and patriotism moves in step with transparent, ethical and accountable institutional governance, in line with the Malaysia MADANI framework.
Today’s meeting follows the board’s previous session on July 6, 2026, when Anwar stressed that the values of nationhood must be strengthened to produce Malaysians of strong identity and integrity. At that meeting, he was also briefed on the progress of the National Service Training Programme (PLKN), which he said had shown encouraging development and received a very good response from participants and parents, and the session highlighted the role of the Felo Kenegaraan (Nationhood Fellows), which brings together figures and statesmen from various backgrounds to contribute ideas towards nation-building, Bernama reported at the time.
The renewed emphasis on youth comes as the government continues to position nationhood education, national service and patriotism programmes as part of its broader effort to build a united and resilient society under the MADANI agenda.
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