Dr THONG Meow-Keong is a Professor of Paediatrics and Consultant Clinical Geneticist at the University of Malaya Medical Centre. He was a Fulbright Scholar and an Australian board-certified clinical geneticist and established the first Genetics Clinic in Malaysia in 1995FF. He is the current President of the College of Paediatrics, Academy of Medicine of Malaysia; Vice-President of the Medical Genetics Society of Malaysia, Trustee of the Rare Disease Alliance Foundation Malaysia, appointed member of the Malaysia Medical Council (Education) and Advisor to the Malaysian Rare Disorders Society. He was the Head, Department of Paediatrics, University of Malaya and past President, Asia-Pacific Society of Human Genetics. His clinical practice and research are focused on rare diseases, genomic medicine, inborn errors of metabolism and genetic counselling. He has published extensively in the field of paediatrics and genetic medicine in low-resource settings. He has authored/co-authored over 100 WOS/ISI journal publications, 3 books, 18 book chapters including the Oxford Monograph in Medical Genetics and an IDEAS White Paper entitled “Rare Diseases in Malaysia”. He was consulted by the World Health Organization and the Ministry of Health Malaysia on various technical issues and clinical practice guidelines. He was active in developing undergraduate and postgraduate paediatric training curriculum programs and promoted advocacy issues affecting children and individuals with rare diseases. He has won major research awards and research grants and has collaboration with major universities globally. He was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia, Academy of Medicine of Malaysia and Academy of Medicine, Singapore.