DATIN MADINAH MOHAMAD - OPENING REMARKS BY Y.BHG. DATIN MADINAH

							                Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation


                          OPENING REMARKS
                                 BY

           Y.BHG. DATIN MADINAH MOHAMAD
                 SECRETARY GENERAL
  MINISTRY OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION,
                      MALAYSIA

                             AT THE
       ST
   1        JC-ICT MEETING MALAYSIA – PAPUA NEW GUINEA
                           23 JUN 2009

                       KOTA KINABALU, SABAH

HIS EXCELLENCY SECRETARY HENAO IDUHU
LEADER OF THE PAPUA NEW GUINEA DELEGATION

MR. VEALI VAGI
HIGH COMMISSIONER, PNG
DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIR

MR. KILA KARO
DEPUTY HIGH COMMISSIONER, PNG
DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIR

DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS OF THE PNG DELEGATION,

EXCELLENCIES,

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,

FIRST AND FOREMOST, I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE THIS
OPPORTUNITY TO EXPRESS MY UTMOST GRATITUDE TO THE
PNG DELEGATION AND WELCOME YOU TO MALAYSIA WITH
THE MALAY PHRASE “SELAMAT DATANG”.




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             Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation


DISTINGUISHED DELEGATES
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,


JUST TO GIVE SOME INTRODUCTION ABOUT MYSELF. I’M
MADINAH MOHAMAD, THE NEWLY APPOINTED SECRETARY
GENERAL OF MOSTI WHO WAS PREVIOUSLY THE DEPUTY
SECRETARY GENERAL OF THIS MINISTRY TAKING FROM THE
FORMER SECRETARY GENERAL, DATO’ ABDUL HANAN ALANG
ENDUT. IN THIS REGARD, I FEEL HONOURED TO BE GIVEN THE
OPPORTUNITY TO LEAD THE MALAYSIAN DELEGATION TO THE
FIRST     INAUGURAL       MALAYSIA-PNG           JOINT        COMMITTEE
MEETING ON ICT COOPERATION AS I WILL BE PART OF THE
PROCESS THAT WILL BIND OUR TWO COUNTRIES CLOSER
TOGETHER. I AM SURE HISTORY WILL NOTE THAT INDEED, WE
TOOK A BOLD STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION IN ENHANCING
OUR RELATIONSHIPS.




LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,




AS   WE    ARE     ALL     AWARE,       THE      MEMORANDUM           OF
UNDERSTANDING            (MOU)         ON     INFORMATION            AND
COMMUNICATION          TECHNOLOGY             (ICT)      COOPERATION
BETWEEN     THE    GOVERNMENT           OF    MALAYSIA         AND   THE
GOVERNMENT OF PAPUA NEW GUINEA (PNG) WAS SIGNED


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               Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation


RECENTLY ON 24 MARCH 2009 IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE
VISIT TO PNG BY THE HONOURABLE DATUK DR. MAXIMUS
JOHNITY ONGKILI, MINISTER OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND
INNOVATION (MOSTI) MALAYSIA.


THIS   JOINT     COMMITTEE         MEETING       ON    ICT      (JC-ICT)   IS
IMPORTANT IN PLANNING OUT AND IMPLEMENTING THE
AREAS AND FORMS OF COOPERATION STIPULATED AND
AGREED TO BY BOTH COUNTRIES UNDER THE MOU SIGNED
EARLIER. THROUGH THE JC-ICT, PROGRAMMES WILL BE
STRUCTURED SYSTEMATICALLY TO BE CARRIED OUT BY THE
RELEVANT AGENCIES. INDEED IT IS SIGNIFICANT THAT WE
SHOULD PRODUCE RESULTS OF OUR ACHIEVEMENTS AT A
CERTAIN POINT OF TIME AS WE WOULD BE SPENDING TIME,
EFFORT AND MONEY TO IMPLEMENT THE PROJECTS THAT
WILL BE AGREED UPON. THEREFORE IT IS IN THE INTEREST
OF BOTH PARTIES TO ENSURE THAT DECISIONS MADE HERE
TODAY WILL PRODUCE POSITIVE RESULTS.


SO, JUST TO LET YOU KNOW YOUR EXCELLENCY THAT WE
HAVE A FEW PROJECT PROPOSALS FROM OUR AGENCIES
AND IT IS OUR BELIEF NOT TO EMPHASISE JUST ON THE
QUANTITY BUT ALSO THE QUALITY OF THE PROJECTS. WE
THANK YOU FOR THE COOPERATION AND UNDERSTANDING
ON THIS MATTER.



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          Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation


I’VE BEEN MADE TO UNDERSTAND THAT APART FROM ICT
COOPERATION UNDER THE MOU, DISCUSSIONS ON OTHER
RELATED     AREAS          SUCH          AS        BROADCASTING,
TELECOMMUNICATION AND COMMUNICATION REGULATIONS
ARE ALSO BEING HELD WITH THE RELEVANT PARTIES FROM
BOTH COUNTRIES. WE ARE GLAD TO FACILITATE SUCH
DISCUSSIONS BECAUSE OF THE CLOSE LINKAGE AND
COMPLEMENTARY       NATURE          OF   BOTH      THE     ICT   AND
TELECOMMUNICATION / BROADCASTING INDUSTRY.




HIS EXCELLENCY, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,




ALLOW ME TO BRIEF YOU ON THE PATH AND DIRECTION THAT
WE ARE EMBARKING ON OUR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN.
TODAY, MALAYSIA IS GEARING ITSELF TO AN ECONOMY THAT
IS DRIVEN LARGELY BY KNOWLEDGE AND INNOVATION, THE
SO-CALLED KNOWLEDGE-BASED ECONOMY (KBE). MALAYSIA
NEEDS TO MAKE RADICAL CHANGES TO BECOME A GLOBAL
PLAYER IN THIS NEW ECONOMY OR THE KBE. THE PHYSICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WAS CRITICAL IN THE INDUSTRIAL
ECONOMY IS NO LONGER A MAJOR DETERMINANT OF
SUCCESS IN THE NEW ECONOMY. INSTEAD THE NEW
ECONOMY REQUIRES INVESTMENTS IN THE KNOWLEDGE
INFRASTRUCTURE.


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           Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation




EVEN, WHEN THE WIDESPREAD USE OF ICT HAS MADE
ACCESSING GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE MUCH EASIER, THERE ARE
OTHER DIMENSIONS, POLITICAL AND SOCIAL THAT MAY
OBSTRUCT THE ABILITY OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES TO
ADVANCE IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, THUS WIDENING
THE GAP BETWEEN THE KNOWLEDGE-RICH COUNTRIES AND
THE KNOWLEDGE-POOR COUNTRIES. WE CANNOT ALLOW
SUCH A SITUATION TO DAMPEN OUR NATIONS’ GOALS TO
HARNESS INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY
ADVANCEMENTS TO ENHANCE THE SOCIAL WELL-BEING OF
OUR   CITIZENS.    WE    MUST        FULLY     UNDERSTAND         AND
APPRECIATE THE COMPLEXITIES AND REQUIREMENTS OF
THE NEW ECONOMY SO THAT WE ARE NOT LEFT AT THE
FRINGES. LET US JOIN FORCES TO MEET THE CHALLENGES
THAT LIE AHEAD OF US.




LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,




I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO PUT ON
RECORD   OUR      THANKS      AND     APPRECIATION          FOR   THE
ENTHUSIASM AND RELENTLESS EFFORTS SHOWN BY MR.
MURALI, THE ADVISOR, DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION &
INFORMATION PNG AND ALSO MR. NUR AZMAN FROM THE


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             Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation


OFFICE OF THE MALAYSIAN HIGH COMMISSION IN PNG, IN
PUSHING     FOR THIS       COOPERATION IN ICT FOR BOTH
COUNTRIES AS WELL AS MAKING THIS INAUGURAL MEETING
POSSIBLE.


LAST BUT NOT LEAST, I TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO THANK
YOUR       EXCELLENCY          ONCE         AGAIN        FOR   YOUR
UNDERSTANDING        AND COOPERATION TO ATTEND THIS
MEETING.    ON    THAT     NOTE,       IT   IS   MY    PLEASURE   TO
INAUGURATE THE FIRST MALAYSIA – PNG JOINT COMMITTEE
MEETING ON ICT.


THANK YOU.




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