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11 September 2012
MEDIA RELEASE
Encouraging Innovation in Human Capital Development
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Prof Emeritus Tan Sri Anuwar Ali said higher learning institutions were accountable for the quality of graduates.
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The two-day Conference on Human Capital Development for an Innovation-Led Economy, an event aimed at enhancing transnational education and research activities for an innovation-fuelled Malaysian economy, was launched today.
Jointly organised by Monash University Sunway campus and the Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT) of the Ministry of Higher Education, the event was aimed at strengthening educational and research collaborations between Malaysia and universities in the region.
Participating universities also used the conference platform to identify and explore best practices for universities in the region in the area of innovativeness.
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Economist and Member of the Board of Advisers of AKEPT, Prof Emeritus Tan Sri Anuwar Ali, who opened the conference, said that higher learning institutions were accountable for the quality of graduates.
“We need to ponder on two questions. The first is – how and to what extent has our universities been successful in producing the kind of human capital we need? And the second question is – are we producing graduates who have the capacity to help stimulate and sustain an innovation-led economy?”
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He went on to say that universities needed to examine their curricula and pedagogies with a fine-tooth comb to see whether they were focused on inculcating an innovation-oriented mindset among graduates.
“It is the responsibility of our universities to develop Malaysia’s talent pool, not only to cater to the demands of the industry but also to provide the country with human capital of high integrity and values which are necessary for a well-rounded development we are seeking to achieve,” Tan Sri Anuwar said.
Deputy Director of AKEPT’s Centre for Leadership Research & Innovation, Associate Professor Dr Mohd Fadzil Mohd Idris, said the forces of human capital must be adequately instilled with entrepreneurship attributes.
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Associate Professor Dr Mohd Fadzil Mohd Idris spoke of the need for a fully engaged innovation ecosystem.
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“The new economy now calls for innovative ideas and dynamism, rather than organisational discipline, adjustability and greater speed in taking decisions…” he said.
Dr Mohd Fadzil said that the “Innovative Malaysia” concept, launched in 2010, required the creation and development of a society that embraced creativity and innovation. |
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Conference participants at rapt attention.
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“And for this to happen, there must be a fully engaged innovation ecosystem consisting of education, government, industry and ventures that lead to entrepreneurial activity,” he told the audience.
Monash University Sunway campus’ Head of Research Management, Ms Joyce Tang, said that knowledge-sharing endeavours like the conference would help Malaysia address crucial issues including training and retaining a research qualified workforce, and how to manage human capital for an innovation-led economy.
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“With a focus on encouraging strategic international collaborations on a multi-disciplinary scale, researchers and academics needed to work across disciplines to foster collaboration that would impact society,” Ms Tang said, adding that delegates from Cambodia, Laos, and the Philippines had participated in the conference.
Mr Mark Rozario, Chief Executive Officer of Special Innovations Unit, the agency under the Prime Minister’s Department, delivered the keynote address titled “The Role of Human Capital Development in Powering an Innovation-Led Economy”.
To help transform Malaysia into an innovation-driven economy, the government launched a number of initiatives including the key driver, the National Higher Education Strategic Plan (PSPTN).
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In the second phase of the PSPTN which ends 2015, the focus, themed “Malaysia’s Global Reach: A New Dimension”, is to ensure that the higher education sector continues to be globally competitive by fostering greater collaboration between Malaysian institutes of higher learning, reinforcing networking and internationalising the curriculum.
Speakers at the conference included Professor Dr Morshidi Sirat, Deputy Director-General, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia (MOHE); Professor Dato’ Dr See Ching Mey, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Division of Industry and Community Network) of Universiti Sains Malaysia; and Professor Ishwar Parhar, Director of Brain Research Institute of Monash Sunway, Monash University Sunway campus.
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Keynote speaker Mr Mark Rozario said Malaysia needed to
increase its level of innovation.
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For media enquiries please contact Monash University Sunway campus Media and Communications Manager Ms Shamini Darshni at +60 19 274 8877 or +6 03 5514 4956.
About Monash University Sunway Campus
Monash University is an energetic and dynamic institution committed to quality education, outstanding research and international engagement. Established in 1958, the University was named after the prominent Australian, Sir John Monash. To date, it has grown into a community of more than 59,000 students, 15,000 staff and 250,000 alumni.
Monash University Sunway Campus was established in Malaysia in 1998. As a full-fledged campus, the Sunway campus offers scholars a rich and international learning experience, supported by collegial processes and comprehensive first-class infrastructure, as we aspire to an intellectual achievement of the highest order.
The Sunway campus offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in: Arts and Social Sciences, Science, Business, Engineering, Information Technology and Medicine and Health Sciences.
www.monash.edu.my
About Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT)
AKEPT was established in January 2008 under the auspices of the Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia in line with the aspirations of the National Higher Education Strategic Plan (NHESP) to transform higher education in Malaysia, especially in the area of human capital development.
AKEPT’s major task is to develop and run customised, experiential programs in leadership, teaching and learning, as well as in the fields of research and innovation in Malaysian Higher Institutions (HEIs) with the goals of nurturing and developing academic leadership, academic excellence and entrepreneurial skills.
AKEPT manifests its programs and activities via its three centres: the Centre for Leadership Training, Centre for Learning and Teaching as well as the Centre for Leadership Research and Innovation.
www.mohe.gov.my/akept/
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Observatory calling on academic partners for interdisciplinary research
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Monash In Brief
10 Nov: The real CSI
Sunway campus staff and students were privy to the role of forensic psychology in court cases by University of Auckland’s Professor Glynn Owens.
At the invitation of the Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Prof Owens, who regularly testifies as an expert witness on behalf of the prosecution or the defence in criminal matters, explained the changing face of forensic psychology in “Application of Scientific Matters within the Justice System”.
“There is a major effort underway to see what we can rely on and what we can’t. In New Zealand, we are looking at the reliability of bloodstain analysis,” he said.
Around the world, he added, research was ongoing on the reliability of eyewitness testimony and fingerprint analysis.
“On tv, actors can catch a criminal from a really clear fingerprint. In real life, although each individual fingerprint is unique, picking up a fingerprint is a very messy process.”
28 July : Prestigious symposium a stepping stone for David Hong
David Hong Jer Lang from the School of IT was among the privileged few who attended the Symposium on Applied Computing (SAC) held in Switzerland on March 21.
The journey was made possible after Hong won the prestigious Student Travel Award to attend the conference organised by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM).
Hong has since presented in over 10 conferences and had his PhD paper published in the Elsevier. Recently, he was nominated to be listed in Who's Who in the World for the 2011 edition.
28 July : Advisory panel to keep School of Business in top form
The School of Business has formed an advisory board made up of industry captains whose primary goal is to provide professional advise on academic and administrative development of courses, recruitment and funding, among other core initiatives.
he School of Business has formed an advisory board made up of industry captains whose primary goal is to provide professional advise on academic and administrative development of courses, recruitment and funding, among other core initiatives.
Issues discussed at its recent first meeting included a possible collaboration with Bursa Malaysia and the Securities Commision on external research funding.
18 August : Possible research collaborations with UK university
Prof Janet Eyre, Professor of Paediatric Neuroscience from University of Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom, recently visited Monash University Sunway campus to explore possible research collaborations.
An existing memorandum of understanding would allow the two universities to collaborate in research on shared areas of strengths, she said.
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