Congress enjoys virtual success

Prof Dr Hilmi delivering his speech at the virtual closing ceremony of ESTCON2020.

THE World Engineering, Science and Technology Congress (ESTCON) 2020 was a success despite being organised virtually for the first time since its inauguration in 2010.

The three-day congress, in its sixth edition, recorded an impressive turnout with more than 1,000 experts from the academic fraternity, industry, government agencies and non-governmental organisations from some 30 countries.

Themed “Science, Technology and Humanities: Reinventing the Future”, it covered a wide range of topics from innovation, engineering and technology to humanities as well as addressing the latest trends and challenges.

ESTCON2020, a Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP) flagship event, set the stage for key players from around the globe to connect and share knowledge while seeking innovative solutions and methods in forging a sustainable future for the next generation.

Nine international conferences were held simultaneously during the congress.

They were the International Conference on Oil and Gas Engineering and Technology (ICOGET 2020); International Conference on Civil, Offshore and Environmental Engineering (ICCOEE 2020); International Conference on Production, Energy and Reliability (ICPER 2020); International Conference on Earth Resources (ICER 2020); International Conference on Process Engineering and Advanced Materials (ICPEAM 2020); International Conference on Intelligent and Advanced System (ICIAS 2020); International Conference on Computer and Information Sciences (ICCOINS 2020); International Conference on Fundamental and Applied Sciences (ICFAS 2020); and International Conference for Management, Social Sciences and Humanities (ICMeSH2020).

Speaking at the virtual closing ceremony, Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry (Mosti) secretary-general Datin Paduka Dr Siti Hamisah Tapsir said: “ESTCON2020 has been a force to reckon with when it comes to resonating the ideas and aspirations of industries and academics with regard to science, technology and humanities.

“Through this congress, we were able to catch a glimpse of what we could do more of and how we could contribute to this new era in these unprecedented times.

“I am indeed encouraged by UTP’s efforts to initiate this platform that promotes collaboration among industry leaders, higher institutions of learning and the governments, which in turn will step up and seek opportunities to forge a sustainable future for generations to come,” she added.

Awards for Best Speaker and Best Paper were also given out at the closing ceremony, aside from the announcement of 10 winners of the congress’ Gamification feature where prizes were won through points earned for active participation.

“I believe we all have the same aspiration in reinventing the future of Science, Technology and Humanities,” said UTP academic deputy vice-chancellor and ESTCON2020 co-chairman Prof Dr Hilmi Mukhtar.

“During these three days, we have seen the possibility of these dreams becoming reality.

“The pandemic has hit hard for all of us, and we need to undergo changes that will decide our survival in the future.

“There is indeed plenty to reflect upon and if this in any way enhances our individual and collective contributions to meeting the global challenges, then the congress can truly be considered a success,” he added.

ESTCON2020 was co-organised by the Alliance of Government-Linked Universities, with support from the Higher Education Ministry, Mosti and Academy of Sciences Malaysia in collaboration with Petronas, Yayasan UTP and the Malaysia Board of Technologists.

The event’s main sponsors were Dialog Group Berhad, Schlumberger, Transwater, Creative Minds, Uzma Berhad, NeuDimension, Maybank, Patentsworth International, Techsource Systems and Telekom Malaysia.

The seventh edition of ESTCON is scheduled to be held in 2022.