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| PUTRAJAYA: The Festival of Ideas in Putrajaya is set to go international, with Malaysia set to host the event, said Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir.
He said the proposal was put forward following discussions with Asean higher education ministers, including from Indonesia and the Philippines, who attended the four-day event, set to conclude tomorrow.
Zambry said the initiative had also received the support of Asean Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn, who proposed that the festival be elevated as an official programme under the Asean Higher Education Programme.
He noted that the festival stood apart from conventional youth programmes, which are typically confined to the university level, as the government had expanded it into a national movement promoting a culture of progressive thinking.
"This is something quite special for them because it rarely happens elsewhere, especially within Asean.
"Programmes organised by governments are usually held at the university level, but in Malaysia, we've turned it into a movement to inspire young people through ideas.
"We hope this programme can become a back-to-back event following the national edition — perhaps dedicating at least one day for Asean-level participation involving ministers, professors and universities across the region," he said.
Zambry said the initiative would position Malaysia as a regional hub for higher education and innovation.
He added that the event had been recognised by the Malaysia Book of Records as having the Most Intellectual Discourse Sessions in an Innovation Ideas Event.
This year's festival, which concludes tomorrow, has drawn 300,000 visitors and featured more than 120 programmes, including policy forums, academic talks, community workshops, university exhibitions, career fairs, robotics competitions and art performances.
The event also witnessed over 100 memorandum of understanding and memorandum of agreement exchanges, and product launches worth over RM160 million.
Zambry said "IdeaVault", created by his ministry, was aimed at elevating public creativity as a driver of national progress.
He said IdeaVault successfully collected nearly 10,000 ideas from across the country during the festival, thousands of which were analysed using artificial intelligence. |
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