Mida: RM2.27b R&D projects approved since 1995

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) approved 167 research and development (R&D) projects with a total investment of RM2.27 billion from 1995, said chief executive officer Datuk Azman Mahmud.

He said the projects were mainly in pharmaceuticals, chemicals, healthcare, machinery, electrical and electronics, automotive, energy, medical devices, palm oil and food production industries.

"Notable projects include the service on tele-radiology in tele-medicine for the healthcare sector, formulation of active pharmaceutical ingredients for generic pharmaceuticals and development of integrated nano-layered stretch films for industrial packaging materials.

"These projects created about 5,355 quality job opportunities, mostly in the science and technical fields," he said in his remarks at the "Funding Research on a Changing Landscape" conference in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.

Also present was Professor Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Zakri Abdul Hamid, the science adviser to the Prime Minister.

Given the fast changing industrial landscape, Azman urged Malaysian companies to reassess and realign their business strategies to adapt to the current challenges.

He said intensifying innovation through strategic collaboration in R&D activities is one of the key components to enable businesses to remain competitive and sustainable.

"By strengthening the innovation ecosystem, we will develop a conducive environment to foster trust among all stakeholders. This, in turn, will contribute to higher value R&D activities and increased spending in the sector.

"It will ultimately cement Malaysia's position as the high technology hub for R&D, design and development testing and technical support centre and Centre of Excellence," Azman added.

He noted that Malaysia's R&D intensity currently stood at 1.13%, which is a relatively low figure when contrasted with the top five most research-intensive countries, namely South Korea (4.29%), Israel (4.11%), Japan (3.59%), Sweden (3.16%) and Finland (3.17%). - Bernama