18
industry
@green | July-August, 2020
Towards
sustainable
development
MIGHT heavily involved in assisting and implementing programmes
BY KHIRTINI K KUMARAN
The Malaysian Industry-Government
Group for High Technology (MIGHT)
is talking to several parties, including
government-linked companies (GLCs),
in its quest to advance competency in
high technology.
It’s President and Chief Executive
Officer (CEO) Datuk Dr Mohd Yusoff
Sulaiman said: “The vision of MIGHT since 1993 has
always been to advance competency in high technology
through partnerships towards sustainable development.
“Technology plays a vital role in sustainable development,”
he shared with @green on MIGHT’s integration of
the development of high technology with sustainable development.
MIGHT is pushing many of these programmes
through startups and entrepreneurs.
On GLCs, he said they needed to change, embrace and
adopt sustainable development.
“We are always encouraged and happy to see many of
these companies embark on this journey, and we are there
to facilitate them and see the fruition of their success.”
MIGHT is a not-for-profit technology think-tank under
the Prime Minister’s Department. It is heavily involved in
assisting and implementing programmes to breed and
nurture innovative entrepreneurs and operationalise a
sustainable development platform for SMEs.
MIGHT plays a crucial role in developing Malaysia’s
high technology for business through its role as a thinktank,
private-public consensus building and business
nurturing platforms.
On Sept 25, 2015, the 193 countries of the UN General
Assembly adopted the 2030 Development Agenda titled
“Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development”.
Malaysia has put in place an institutional framework to
facilitate the operationalisation of SDGs at all levels.
In the latest Government policy - The Shared Prosperity
Vision 2030 (SPV2030) focusses on the equitable growth
of each value chain, class, community and geography to
create a stronger sense of harmony, stability and unity
among the people by 2030.
Significantly, all of these blueprints or roadmaps in
developing Malaysia are underpinned by one common
factor — sustainable development.
Sustainable Development Programmes
Another example of such a sustainable development programme
is the Global Cleantech Innovation Programme
(GCIP) under the United Nations Industrial Development
Organization (UNIDO), with the partnership of the Global
Environment Facility (GEF).
The programme promotes an innovation and entrepreneur
ecosystem by identifying and nurturing cleantech
innovators and entrepreneurs. In Malaysia, the GCIP is
supported by MIGHT together with Cleantech Open.
“It is actually to nurture entrepreneurs, startups and
SMEs to become better at marketing and promoting sustainable
development business,” said Mohd Yusoff.
“We take about 30 entrepreneurs per year into the
programme and nurture and coach them. The winner
then goes to Silicon Valley to pitch their innovation at the
Cleantech Open Global Forum.”
In 2014, Free the Seed, a startup company which manufactures
paddy waste into biodegradable packaging, won
and represented Malaysia.
“The best thing is Free the Seed has gone global and is
now exporting its biodegradable packaging material to
Europe.”
Datuk Yusoff added: “Whatever high-tech industry that
we go into must protect the resources and the environment
for the future.”
He shared the paddy field farmers involved in Free the
Seed are now more aware of sustainable development and
climate change. The farmers no longer burn the paddy
More
sustainable
city projects
in Malaysia
The MALAYSIAN Industry-Government Group for High
Technology (MIGHT) is looking to introduce the Sustainable City
Development project in Selangor and Kedah.
This follows the success of the Sustainable City Development
project in Malacca, which was launched on May 2, 2017.
“When we do such projects, having a plan, political will and
infrastructure are important,” said MIGHT President and Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) Datuk Dr Mohd Yusoff Sulaiman.
Hence, Malacca was the perfect candidate for the
implementation of the project in 2017. The State established a
Malacca City Action Plan (GCAP) that overlooks the Green City
initiatives under the Malacca Green Technology Corporation
(PTHM).
The partnership between PTHM and MIGHT helps to realise
the green initiatives ambitioned by the State.
“We came in and helped translate the programs envisioned by
the State,” said Mohd Yusoff.
The Sustainable City Development project is part of the
Global Environment Facility’s (GEF) Sustainable Cities Integrated
Approach Pilot (SC-IAP) and implemented by the United Nations
Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
In Malaysia, the programme is in partnership with the Ministry
of Urban Well-being, Housing and Local Government and
MIGHT.
Mohd Yusoff acknowledged that the programme in Malacca