Malaysia

Established in 1995 the ASM aims to foster the development and promotion of Malaysia’s capacity in science, engineering and technology. ASM is independent of government and provides science based recommendations to policy makers to help resolve national issues where science, engineering and technology can make a contribution. ASM aims to foster national and international collaboration in science and technology and is instrumental in fostering a culture of scientific excellence and in enhancing international collaboration.

The Council Member for Malaysia is Dr. Ahmad Tajuddin Ali, President of the Academy of Sciences, Malaysia.

The NMO Secretary for Malaysia is Dr. F.A.Sc. Ahmad B. Ibrahim, Chief Executive Officer and Fellow of the Academy of Sciences, Malaysia.

Research of relevance to Malaysia

IIASA’s partnership with Malaysia is new, and as such specific research collaborations and partnerships are still in development. However, given the global nature of IIASA’s research and our past efforts in Asian countries there are many research activities that have been, and continue to be of benefit to Malaysia, some of these are described below.

Air quality and GHG mitigation:

• The Greenhouse gas-Air pollution Interactions and Synergies model GAINS was developed by IIASA to identify cost-effective emission control strategies that meet air quality and greenhouse gas emission targets. GAINS has been applied in the international negotiations of the Convention on Long-range Trans-boundary Air Pollution and the European Union (EU); it has analyzed mitigation efforts for the climate negotiations under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and for environmental assessments under the UN Environment Program (UNEP). The GAINS Asia model has been implemented for China, India, and Pakistan, a specific module has been established for South Asia and thus readily implementable for Malaysia.

Forestry and land management:

• The IIASA initiated and hosted Harmonized World Soil Database (HWSD) incorporates soil information across the globe. On completion the HWSD will improve estimation of current and future land potential productivity, help identify land and water limitations, and enhance assessing risks of land degradation, particularly soil erosion. The HWSD contributes scientific knowledge for planning sustainable expansion of agriculture, and for guiding policies to address emerging land competition issues concerning food, energy and biodiversity.

Population and health studies:

• The Asian Demographic and Human Capital Data Sheet 2008, produced by IIASA and the Asian MetaCentre for Population and Sustainable Development Analysis in Singapore, incorporates data and analysis for Malaysia. The 2008 data suggests that the population of Malaysia will increase from 27.2 million in 2007 to 39.6 million by 2050. By 2050 16% of the population is expected to be more than 65 years of age. In 2007 this was only 4%. Life expectancy for females is expected to increase from 74.5 years in 2007, to 80.0 years in 2050, while the number of woman (aged 15-44) with tertiary education is expected to increase from 1% in 2007 to 20 percent in 2050.
• In a related study IIASA analyzed future ageing in Southeast Asia – including Malaysia - relating demographic trends, human capital, health status and education. Such analyses provide important background information about the challenges and opportunities facing Asian countries in terms of financing ageing populations.
• Catastrophic health expenditure, conventionally defined as expenditure exceeding 25% of household income, is a major impoverishing event in countries such as China, Vietnam. Catastrophic health events force families to sell off assets and borrow money, often ensnaring them in a poverty trap from which they have little hope of escape. Ongoing IIASA research on the dynamics of catastrophic risk management and on complex systems interacting to affect human health and wellbeing, especially in the context of rapid urbanization, will take account of such potential traps.  Research focuses not only on effective policy solutions for well-defined poverty traps in all of these and other areas, but also on characterizing systemic commonalities with a view toward identifying widely-applicable leverage points. Findings will have direct relevance for Malaysia.
• In 2008, IIASA’s Steven Ney was senior expert on environment and higher education/research for the European Commission Joint Evaluation Unit which evaluated development cooperation with Thailand, Malaysia, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Capacity Building

IIASA’s annual Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP) offers advanced level PhD candidates the opportunity to work with IIASA scientists over a 3-month period, with the explicit aim of refining or extending their research skills in the area of systems analysis.

Last edited: 15 May 2012