British Council Malaysia is delighted to announce that University of Reading was named the winner of the UK-Malaysia Education Institutional Partnership Award 2023. The university bagged this award for their partnership with Universiti Tunku Abdul Razak (UTAR) in implementing Nutrigenetics and Nutrigenomics Research and Training Unit (N2RTU) which resulted in a cross-border linkage between the UK and Malaysia on capacity building, industrial linkages, and student mobility programmes.
The strategic alliance between these two universities has birthed the MONEY project which utilises resources from both countries to identify ground-breaking results that aid Malaysia in overcoming the obesity epidemic. The implementation of N2RTU has initiated more competitive gene and gut microbiome testing laboratories that use high throughput technologies to make genetic analysis available and affordable to generate large data sets that are required for a precise nutrition practice. In addition, a Ministry of Health research grant has been developed through the discussion between UK-UTAR experts with the Research Heads from the Malaysia’s Ministry of Health to conduct a national-level study on Adolescent Obesity.
University of Cambridge’s partnership with Universiti Malaya on multi-disciplinary research on algae cells to generate bioelectricity was recognised and celebrated as the first runner up of the award. Their research collaboration has evolved into a transdisciplinary collaboration through knowledge exchange and cultivation between UK-Malaysia beyond the Newton-Ungku Omar Fund.
The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is the second runner up of the award for their strategic alliance with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) in surgical education, assessment, and professional development, especially the establishment of the RCSEd’s international office in the UKM premise which led to greater collaborations with other universities globally.
This is the second year that British Council Malaysia has sponsored the award in partnership with the British Malaysia Chamber of Commerce as part of the latter’s prestigious Business Excellence Awards. The 2022 winner was Lancaster University for its partnership with Sunway University in establishing the Future Cities Research Institute (FCRI), as well as for their multi-dimensional partnerships in creating jobs and encouraging knowledge transfer.
British Council Malaysia will continue to support and celebrate high-value and impactful education partnerships that benefit the UK and Malaysia and aims to receive a higher number of applications next year. The next call for applications will be announced in January 2024.
About UK-Malaysia Education Institutional Partnership Award
This outstanding award goes to a partnership between a UK higher or further education institution and a Malaysian organisation(s) to deliver significant impact in the last five years. The joint-venture collaboration and synergies created through this partnership will have driven exceptional results and shown significant value-creation to the education sector in Malaysia and the UK; capitalising on the best of UK & Malaysia expertise through a seamless partnership. This is the second year that British Council has sponsored the UK-Malaysia Education Institutional Partnership Award 2023 in partnership with the British Malaysia Chamber of Commerce as part of the latter’s prestigious Business Excellence Awards (BEA).cellence Awards (BEA).