Malaysia Sets Sights On Top 20 In Global Innovation Index

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 5 (Bernama) -- The government has agreed to introduce strategic measures to position Malaysia among the world’s top 20 countries in the Global Innovation Index (GII), through more effective cross-agency governance and monitoring.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the matter was among the decisions made at the National Science Council meeting, which he chaired this morning.

“I chaired the National Science Council meeting this morning, which focused on efforts to strengthen Malaysia’s position in the GII - an important benchmark for evaluating the country’s level of innovation and global competitiveness.

“This index serves as a guide for the government, industry and policymakers in formulating strategic decisions to ensure Malaysia becomes a high-technology nation based on MADANI values by 2030,” he said in a Facebook post.

According to Anwar, the meeting also discussed improvements to the funding mechanism for Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) programmes to ensure more efficient delivery and greater impact.

He said that public-private partnerships have been identified as the main catalyst, in line with the National STI Policy 2021-2030, which aims to transform Malaysia into a technology-driven nation.

Anwar also emphasised the importance of coordinating the mission-oriented research and development (R&D) agenda to ensure it is not pursued in isolation, so that each innovation genuinely benefits the people and contributes to a better future for the country.

-- BERNAMA