FOCUS ON YOUTH: CEO of SME Corporation Malaysia, Dato’ Dr Hafsah Hashim advocates an entrepreneurial spirit among students to create more job opportunities in the country.

INDUSTRY-ACADEMIA PARTNERSHIP: (from left) UCSI Vice-Chancellor and President, Senior Prof Dato’ Dr Khalid Yusoff; CEO of SME Corporation Malaysia, Dato’ Dr Hafsah Hashim; and UCSI Academic Affairs and Support Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Prof Dato’ Dr Ahmad H

KEY PLAYERS: Participants from ministries, corporations and academia gained great insights from Dato’ Dr Hafsah’s speech on ‘COMPETING IN THE 21st CENTURY: Enhancing SME-University Engagement to Meet the Challenges’.

LEADERS: Dato’ Dr Hafsah (sixth from right) with Senior Prof Dato’ Dr Khalid Yusoff (fourth from right), (from left) Margaret Soo, Director of UCSI’s Centre for Languages, Prof Dato’ Dr Ahmad Ibrahim, Prof Dato’ Dr Ahmad Hj Zainuddin and the student helpe

KUALA LUMPUR: Dato’ Dr Hafsah Hashim, Chief Executive Officer of SME Corporation Malaysia kicked off the Eminent Persons Series Pre-Conference Talks organised by UCSI University (UCSI). 

The three part Series leads up to UCSI’s upcoming Strengthening Industry-Academia Partnership (SIAP) Conference that will take place in March this year. The Conference is co-organised with the Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT). 

Dato’ Dr Hafsah spoke on ‘COMPETING IN THE 21st CENTURY: Enhancing SME-University Engagement to Meet the Challenges’, where she addressed the issues and invaluable opportunities for more productive collaboration between academia and industry. During her speech, she highlighted the important role that academic institutions play in cultivating entrepreneurship among youths. 

“We need that kind of focus so that we can ensure when the students leave their alma maters, they also have the option of kick-starting their own businesses, become job creators instead of job seekers, and simultaneously boost the country’s economic development.” 

Dato’ Dr Hafsah also praised UCSI for organising an event that functions as a bridge between academia and the industry. 

“This event is very important and useful as it gives current information to institutions of higher learning and allows them to play their part in resolving the country’s economic issue,” she said. 

UCSI’s Vice-Chancellor and President, Senior Prof Dato’ Dr Khalid Yusoff said that both the Series and the upcoming Conference aim to connect corporate organisations with higher education institutions in order to produce holistic, entrepreneurial and balanced graduates as emphasised by the National Higher Education Blueprint 2015 – 2025. 

“We are very honoured to have the key players share their experiences and help both the industry and academia to see clearer what is at stake and what we can do to collaborate,” he said. 

The second and third Eminent Persons Series Pre-Conference Talks will feature two more keynote speakers namely Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz, Chairman of Air Asia X Sdn Bhd and Prof Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Zakri Abdul Hamid, Science Advisor to the Prime Minister of Malaysia, on 18 February and 11 March, respectively. They will share their thoughts and formula on moving towards achieving a firm industry-academia partnership. 

The SIAP Conference will be held on 22 March 2016 and is opened to the public. It will be attended by corporate leaders, professors and managers from higher education institutions, SMEs, trade associations, professional bodies and ministries.