[Kuala Lumpur, October 26, 2016] Malaysia-China Business Council (MCBC) and Huawei launched the inaugural Malaysia-China Digital Economy Forum today. The event, officiated by the Malaysian Prime Minister, The Honorable Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak, signified a milestone of Malaysia’s continued efforts to drive the nation’s digital economy transformation.

Nowadays, the digital economy has emerged as a key GDP contributor to almost every country. Governments worldwide have announced their digital plans, marking a decisive step towards digitizing traditional industries.  Malaysia’s very own Digital Malaysia agenda ushers in an exciting era of digitalization and innovation in the local economic landscape, strengthening the information and communications technology industry in developing the nation’s digital economy as it is expected to be a primary contributor in the coming years. As Malaysia’s largest trading partner, China’s digital economy is reshaping the every aspect of the industry. Policies such as Internet Plus and Plus Internet are birthed to accelerate the digitalization of China’s industries. This forum brings together top-notch industry leaders as well as policy makers from China and Malaysia, creating an excellent platform to share and exchange digital economy development ideas.

Tan Sri Ong Ka Ting, Chairman of Malaysia China Business Council said: “With the exponential growth of digital economy sweeping through the global economic landscape, Malaysia with her strong ICT ecosystem should ride on it to boost the economy. Taking cognisance of China as the leading nation in digital economy having produced many prominent entrepreneurs in digital economy, it is the most opportune and appropriate moment to collaborate with them riding on the close relationship between Malaysia and China.”

“I hope this forum will set the pace for closer cooperation and partnership between entrepreneurs of both countries for win-win relationship. Malaysia-China Business Council as the main organiser of the forum with Huawei as co-organiser will be happy to move forward in promoting this new industry in order that Malaysia will stay ahead of the curve in digital economy which will have positive impact to the economy of the country,” Tan Sri Ong added.

At the event, Ryan Ding, Huawei Executive Director of the Board and President of Products & Solutions commented, “Since Huawei established our presence by setting up office in Malaysia 15 years ago; we have strived to become a trusted strategic partner in driving the advancement of the nation’s digital economy. In working hand-in-hand with Malaysia towards digital transformation, we have been committed in facilitating the growth of new innovative technologies. Huawei would like to work closely with all industry partners to make a bigger pie and share the benefit with the industry chain. Transformation to a digital economy requires crucial innovation in governance and regulation, and most importantly, a more open and dynamic ecosystem that support strong alliance and nurture new ideas. The Huawei new innovation hub opened by the Prime Minister this morning is exactly the platform for our partners to create, test and validate new applications and services. Meanwhile, by collaborating with the Ministry of Higher Education, Huawei aims to train 1,000 local public universities and polytechnic ICT students across the nation in order to assist Malaysia to cultivate local ICT talents and make the nation more competitive for future digital transformation.”

Malaysia –China Digital Economy forum saw prominent industry leaders from the both Malaysia and China, who shared insights into Malaysia’s vision for digital economy, trends affecting the nation’s GDP growth, as well as strategies, partnerships and roadmaps for digital transformation.

Speakers of the forum included Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak, Tan Sri Ong Ka Ting, Chairman of Malaysia-China Business Council, Ryan Ding, Executive Director of the Board and President of Products & Solutions, Huawei Technologies, SY Lau, Senior Executive Vice President of Tencent and President of its Online Media Group and YBhg, Dato’ Yasmin Mahmood, CEO of Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation amongst others. The discussion panel included representatives from Huawei, Khazanah, Axiata Digital Services, Silverlake Axis Berhad, Lazada, MCMC, MAMPU as well as EPU. 

As part of Huawei Malaysia 15 Years Anniversary Program, a new Huawei Customer Solution Integration and Innovation Experience Centre is opened earlier in the morning. Another four technology summits focusing on mobile broadband, fixed broadband, cloud service as well as safe city will be held in the afternoon for industry players. 

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About MCBC:

Malaysia-China Business Council (MCBC) was established in 2002 to further strengthen the relationship between Malaysia and China by promoting better understanding and closer coordination among government agencies, private enterprises and individuals for the overall benefit of the business communities of both nations. MCBC provides business information to Malaysian entrepreneurs in China as well as Chinese entrepreneurs in Malaysia. MCBC has been tasked to facilitate government to government national level projects such as the China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park,  Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park, Xiamen University Malaysia and etc under the patronage of the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

About Huawei:

Huawei is a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider with the vision to enrich life through communication. Driven by customer-centric innovation and open partnerships, Huawei has established an end-to-end ICT solutions portfolio that gives customers competitive advantages in telecom and enterprise networks, devices and cloud computing. Huawei’s 170,000 employees worldwide are committed to creating maximum value for telecom operators, enterprises and consumers. Our innovative ICT solutions, products and services have been deployed in over 170 countries and regions, serving more than one third of the world's population. Founded in 1987, Huawei is a private company fully owned by its employees.

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