Four academics secured Masa Policy Development Programme (MPDP) Research Grant

From left: Dr Low, Dr Chang, Kalai Vani and Dr Falahat

Four UTAR academics successfully secured the Masa Policy Development Programme (MPDP) Research Grant out of the 134 research proposals submitted by researchers and academicians from 21 local and private universities and institutions in seven focus areas of strategies as outlined under the on-going National Recovery Plan (NRP).

Each successful policy research proposal was awarded up to RM10,000. In addition to being awarded a research grant, the successful applicants also had the opportunities to publish their research reports as policy documents to be disseminated to national and international agencies handling public policy.

MPDP was introduced with the aim to enable researchers and academicians to provide competitive decisions and policy inputs to assist in the implementation of the on-going national recovery process and governmental strategies and plans post-Covid-19.

Faculty of Accountancy and Management (FAM) academic Dr Low Mei Peng’s research titled Assessing Organisational Resources for Post Pandemic Resiliency and Employees’ Well-Being aimed to assess the level of organisational resources specifically the economic capital, social capital, human capital and physical capital. The research also sought to understand the organisational response toward the Covid-19 pandemic in terms of current practices and future plans while exploring the level of organisational resources together with their immediate remedy and going-forward plan. Dr Low shared, “The findings will serve as an input to propose practical recommendations to business organisations on the resources to be emphasised for organisational resilience; and to policymakers for the supports required to assist business organisations for prompt recovery and crisis preparedness. Organisational Resilience is the ability of an organisation to anticipate, prepare for, respond and adapt to incremental change and sudden disruptions in order to survive and prosper.”

FAM academic Dr Mohammad Falahat Nejadmahani’s research titled Big Data Analytics (BDA) Capability Model for SMEs: Post COVID-19, aim to explored and identify the drivers of big data analytics capability that leads to SMEs sustainability and superior performance. The outcome of this project is to develop a big data analytics capability model that explains how SMEs can add value and support the decision-making process in a volatile environment such as COVID-19. He said, “It is indeed very exciting to receive such a prestigious research policy grant from MASA. Being part of MASA’s policy development programme enables us to propose a policy that can be acknowledged and implemented by Malaysia’s policymakers. Our proposed policy directly impacts Malaysia’s economy as a whole by addressing Malaysia’s Shared Prosperity Vision 2030. This research will contribute to the industries that are still in the low value-added category with low adoption of high technology. Also, it will ultimately lead to the realisation of SMEs as the ‘game changers’ to transition the economy to a high-income nation. Our proposed model could help SMEs boost their performance in value creation, directly influencing the country’s GDP and employability. I would like to thank the team members who are joining me in this project; Assoc Prof Dr Cheah Phaik Kin from UTAR Centre for Learning and Teaching, Dr Sia Bik Kai, Dr Corrinne Lee Mei Jyin and Jayamalathi Jayabalan from the Centre for Entrepreneurial Sustainability (CENTS).”

Faculty of Information and Communication Technology (FICT) academic Dr Chang Jing Jing’s research titled Increasing medical specialists in Malaysia: Beware of vicious cycle aimed to identify the leverage points in order to achieve a sustainable supply of medical specialists. “Shortage of medical specialists has long been an issue in Malaysia,” Dr Chang mentioned, “In recent years, the Ministry of Health (MOH) has taken multiple initiatives to increase the number of medical specialists such as by expanding the medical graduate’s specialisation pathway. However, it is equally important to study the problems faced when increasing the number of medical specialist such as specialist training and our overloaded public healthcare system. It is hoped that the project can help to recommend policy that encourage a more sustainable supply of medical specialists.” Dr Chang would also like to thank Ms Seow Ai Na, Dr Syafiie and Dr Nani Draman for joining the team. 

Faculty of Business and Finance academic Kalai Vani Kalimuthu’s research titled Role of People with Disabilities (PWDs) towards the Sustainability of the Tourism Sectors in Malaysia focused on the main barriers faced by People with Disabilities (PWDs) in terms of participation in tourism and addressed the best strategy taken by travel agencies to ensure the accessibility of facilities for tourists with disabilities and at the same time to study the lacking existing policies to ensure the accessibility of facilities for tourists with disabilities. “Travel and tourism have continued to grow at a fast pace throughout time. Statistics indicate that tourism and travel contribute significantly to the economy of the nation. However, many individuals lost their employment due to the covid-19 pandemic, and the tourist industry has suffered greatly. Since October 2021, tourism spots have begun to reopen in Malaysia. Various policies aiming at revitalising the tourist industry are being suggested. To better understand People with Disabilities (PWDs), further study like this is required. Because the motives for their trip may be distinct from those of other visitors, it is essential to look into them. The travel choices made by PWDs are influenced by a desire for leisure, self-discovery, and accessibility. Beyond these intrinsic motivations, this study will discover a connection between travel agents and travel decisions made by PWDs, who benefited from the availability of accessible travel options and vice versa. Importantly, this study is expected to discover that travel agents connected the leisure travel of PWDs instead to other people’s journeys. The related government policy should encourage providing accessible facilities for disability tourism. It is a new opportunity to increase the number of tourists besides recovering tourism sectors after the Covid-19 pandemic,” she shared.

Institut Masa Depan Malaysia (MASA) is an independent think tank that brings together experts in government and academia to provide quality research, policy recommendations and analysis on a full range of public policy issues, guided by the shared prosperity values.