THIS year marks 75 years of the British Council’s presence in Malaysia.
Since opening its doors here in 1948, the British Council has continued to create opportunities for the United Kingdom and Malaysia through education, research, language teaching, science, enterprise and the arts.
The organisation kicked off its jubilee celebration last month with a dinner reception for over 100 partners from across the public and private sectors in Malaysia and also UK alumni and leaders in education, the arts and sciences.
As part of the anniversary festivities, the British Council also hosted a high-profile UK Alumni Symposium and Careers Fair in Kuala Lumpur.
British Council chief executive officer Scott McDonald was proud of the organisation’s success in the country.
“It is humbling to see how even after 75 years, British Council Malaysia continues to enable our two countries to connect, draw expertise and inspiration from each other, and provide collaborative opportunities in the arts, education and sciences,” he said during his inaugural visit to Malaysia.
“Every day, the British Council and its trusted partners, including the government, institutions and practitioners in Malaysia and in the UK, work together in creating a better and more exciting future for us all.”
He said the Covid-19 pandemic greatly strengthened the case for international partnership and collaboration.
“British Council Malaysia’s efforts to bring regional and global experts and policymakers together digitally illustrates the adaptability of our team and sets the bar for cultural and educational diplomacy for the next 75 years,” he added.
During his visit to Kuala Lumpur, McDonald met the staff of British Council and its partners as well as members of the Malaysia-UK alumni network.
He also gave a talk at Sunway University and during a radio show, spoke on UK–Malaysia relations and the value of cultural engagement.
One highlight of the British Council’s recent successes in Malaysia is the regional expansion of a unique digital creative hub network devised in partnership between Me.reka and Baltic Creative CIC Liverpool to promote shared resources and research on creative economy.
Another achievement was a digital conference for 190 UK and Malaysian leaders and policymakers in higher education that resulted in nine new UK–Malaysia university partnerships as well as a five-star quality rating awarded by Malaysia’s Education Ministry to the British Council Penang Teaching Centre.
For details on other activities and competitions held to mark the anniversary, visit www.britishcouncil.my
