KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia reaffirms its commitment to fostering collaboration with China in science, technology, and innovation (STI) through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed between the Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).
Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Chang Li Kang said he looked forward to both countries continuing the pursuit of research excellence under the second batch of the Strategic Research Fund-Request for Proposal (SRF-RFP), Malaysia-China Joint Research Programme 2025.
"Through this initiative, there is a possibility of matching grants through the Malaysia Science Endowment (MSE) to bring together research and industry to provide demand-driven and market-delivery research and development (R&D).
"Among the areas under SRF-RFP that we could explore are energy storage technology, human vaccines, space technology, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and advanced material technology," he said at the MOU signing ceremony here on Monday (Dec 9).
The MOU, which aimed to expand the scope of the partnership between both academies to include emerging fields such as neurotechnology, artificial intelligence, agriculture, and renewable energy, was signed by ASM president Datuk Dr Tengku Mohd Azzman Shariffadeen, and CAS vice-president Prof Hongping He, and was witnessed by Chang.
It was built upon the foundation of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) signed in 1999, reflecting a strengthened and renewed commitment between ASM and CAS.
Chang said the ministry anticipated joint mission-oriented R&D initiatives being conducted in the future between the two esteemed academies in areas of common interest between SRF-RFP and the MOU, such as in artificial intelligence (AI).
Meanwhile, Tengku Mohd Azzman, who is also the STI advisor for the Prime Minister, said that with the signing of the MOU, ASM and CAS reaffirmed their shared vision of leveraging scientific advancements for the global common good.
He said this renewed partnership aimed to enhance joint research initiatives, facilitate knowledge exchange, and promote international collaboration to address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.
Hongping in the meantime expressed his hope that through the MOU, both countries could continue to deepen cooperation in more areas and jointly meet new technological challenges.
"Scientific and technological cooperation is important to China-Malaysia relations and a key driver of global scientific and technological progress.- Bernama
