ASM Briefing to the Malaysian Council of Eminent Persons (CEP)

ASM President Professor Datuk Dr Asma Ismail FASc and ASM Vice-president Academician Datuk Dr Tengku Mohd Azzman Shariffadeen FASc were invited to meet with the Malaysian Council of Eminent Persons (CEP) on 19 July 2018.

The briefing to the CEP by ASM was titled “Reinventing National Innovation Ecosystem for a Progressive Malaysia”.

The briefing featured several proposals to enhance innovation to benefit the country; among them were the need to re-evaluate the current ecosystem of innovation and how to sustain it in the long run.

The proposal highlights an imbalance in the demographics of scientists and researchers. Currently, a majority of scientists and researchers are with institutions of higher learning (IHL); compared to a relatively small amount that are working with business enterprises. The Academy highlights the need for a robust approach to bridge the academia with the industry, to ensure that innovation is achieved and implemented effectively.

The proposal also highlighted the need to increase allocation of research funds especially in experimental development. Currently, only 8.6 percent of the allocated funding was utilised; this is expected to increase to at least 50 percent in the future.

The Academy of Sciences Malaysia looks forward to the consideration of its proposal by the CEP.