GRANT RECIPIENTS: (seated from left) Deputy vice-chancellor Professor Dr Peter Songan, Khairuddin and Lau during a photo call with projects’ leaders and members.
KUCHING: Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) announced securing RM455,661 worth of the Knowledge Transfer Programme (KTP) grant from the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) to fund its community and industry related projects in the state for a period of two
years.
The recipients of the grant are Professor Dr Lau Seng in collaboration with Pro-Auto Care Centre Sdn Bhd to develop fuel-cell for vehicles to improve fuel economy and carbon footprint in the country; Associate Professor Dr Alvin Yeo to develop the E-Commerce Capacity Building for the Penan community in Long Lamai, Baram; and Dr Wan Azlan Wan Zainal Abidin to develop the micro-hydro in Kampung Semulong Ulu, Sri Aman.
These projects are in line with the university’s continuous effort in serving the community and the grant would provide a solid foundation for the successful implementation of the projects, said vice-chancellor Professor Datuk Dr Khairuddin Ab Hamid yesterday.
“It is our hope that throught these projects we can help our communities as well as industries to gain new knowledge and improve their livelihood and competitiveness. We believe that the knowledge we have at the university should be shared, transferred and exchanged for the benefits of mankind,” he said at the launching of KTP held at the university’s staff
lounge.
He explained that under the KTP, universities are no longer the sole custodian of the knowledge. Knowledge may be transferred from the industry or community to academics and vice versa.
Through the industrial or community engagement, the knowledge generated will be more relevant and applicable, he said, pointing out that they are creating a whole new learning environment for academics, industralists, public and students.
Lau Seng said the KTP is created based on several principles including recognising a broad range of activities to support mutually beneficial collaborations between universities, industries and communities; to provide a platform for the exchange of tangible and intangible intellectual property, expertise, learning and skills between academia, industry and community.
It also provides interactions that include joint research, consultancy, education, training, graduate development, conferences, sharing of physical properties and students placements.
“Another principle is public institutions of higher learning engagement with industry and community through role play by academia, industy and community, graduates and postgraduates.
“Administratively, the KTP projects are divided into two groups namely community engagement and industrial collaboration,” he said.
The KTP was officially launched by the Minister of Higher Education, Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin in June.
The objective of the grant is to recognise and promote the transfer of knowledge via the exchange of creative and innovative ideas, research findings, experiences and skills between institutions of higher learning, industries, government agencies and the wider community.
This enables the development and improvement of the quality of products, services and policies to be shared for mutual benefit among the stakeholders.