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Prosper Thy Neighbour
The Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme (MTCP), implemented since 1980, was
formulated based on the belief that the development of a country depends on the quality of
its human resources. Hence, the MTCP emphasizes the development of human resources through
the provision of training in various areas which are essential for a country's development such
as development planning, poverty alleviation, agriculture development, investment promotion,
central banking, public administration, and English language.
The Economic Planning Unit, which is the focal point for all technical cooperation, is responsible
for the administration and coordination of all MTCP activities. Since its inception, the MTCP has
expanded in terms of its scope and coverage with emphasis on the exchange of development
experience. What has begun as a modest programme of technical cooperation with our ASEAN
neighbours has since expanded to include all the major regions of the world. Through the
various training programmes, Malaysia shares its own experience in different areas of development
including that of facing economic challenges such as the 1997/98 Asian financial crisis.
To ensure that the training programmes are relevant and meet the needs of participating
member countries, new programmes, especially in economic management and human resource
development have been designed to cater to their special needs, particularly, economies in
transition as well as countries which are in the throes of reconstruction. These countries
include Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam (CLMV), Bosnia and Herzegovina (BH), East
Timor and Afghanistan.
Among the measures taken to ensure that MTCP is planned and delivered in accordance
with the priorities of the participating countries are, regular consultations, specially packaged
courses, needs assessment missions and close collaboration with the participating parties
in the implementation of the training programmes. The MTCP forms an integral part of the
agenda of all bilateral Joint Commission Meetings (JCM), organized by the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs Malaysia.
T r a i n i n gprogrammes arespecially designedto meet the needsof participatingmember countries
PHILOSOPHY OF MALAYSIAN TECHNICAL COOPERATION PROGRAMME (MTCP)
"..based on the belief that human
resource development is a vital
catalyst for countries to achieve
sustainable economic and social
development."
Initially, the MTCP's technical cooperation was confined to the nine ASEAN member
countries. Since then, the MTCP has cooperated with other developing countries by providing
technical and academic skills training, contributing towards bridging their development gaps.
Currently, it has been expanded to include 133 member countries representing nine regions in
the world as follows:
VIM. America
Through these cooperation efforts, Malaysia's bilateral ties with these MTCP member
countries were strengthened, with many supporting Malaysia's philosophy of promoting
smart partnerships, regional cooperation such as that of ASEAN-East Asia and a united South-
South position.
The MTCP is implemented through several cooperation programmes: training in both
short and long-term courses; study visits and practical attachment; advisory services through
the dispatch of experts; and project-type assistance which includes the provision of equipment
and assistance in-kind on a highly selective and case-by-case basis. The application process
starts with the notification of courses through the Malaysian Embassies/High Commissions.
The relevant brochures by the individual institution will be distributed to each focal point
for nomination by the participating countries. Following the official endorsement, the
application will be forwarded to the institutions for selection by the selection committee
comprising representatives from Economic Planning Unit, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
Public Services Department.
!
As at the end of 2001, the MTCP has a membership of over 8,000 alumni world-wide
who were able to network as well as promote goodwill and mutual understanding. The largest
number of participants came from ASEAN as a group.
The MTCP short-term courses are less than three months duration. On average, these
courses run for four weeks. This short-term training is in diverse areas where Malaysia has
acquired expertise, whereby 66 scheduled courses are currently available annually in 22 training
institutions and government agencies. These courses range from public administration and
management, productivity improvement, civil aviation, ICT, central banking, agriculture management,
veterinary services, fisheries, radio broadcasting and TV production, investment promotion,
property valuation, tax administration, cooperative management, palm oil plantation management
as well as fire fighting and English Language.
Some of these courses are customized to meet the individual needs of different countries.
Beginning in 2000, dedicated courses were designed and implemented to meet the specific
needs of member countries such as Bosnia-Herzegovina, East Timor, Palestine and Myanmar
through courses in diplomacy, commercial pilot training, public administration, micro finance,
training for police, prison wardens, medical assistants and community nurses as well as leadership
organizational management. Under the ASEAN-Mekong Basin Development Cooperation Programme,
the MTCP provided training and human resource development in ground water resource
development to the CLMV countries. The MTCP also provided special training courses in 1999-
2001 for D-8 member countries comprising Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan
and Turkey in the areas of central banking, capital market development and management of
privatization based on the Malaysian experience.
In the digital era, where knowledge and technology are constantly evolving, the South
countries are hard pressed to keep up with the North. South-South cooperation is therefore
necessary, particularly, cooperation as partners who mutually re-enforce and support one another.
Malaysia is ready to share the knowledge and experience in dealing with the many difficulties
of the development process, especially in niche areas in which Malaysia has gained advantage
through many years of research and development such as in oil palm plantation management,
agriculture development and management of veterinary services. Courses such as Human
Resources Management, Crisis Management, Planning and Management of the Urban Environment
provide participants with the Malaysian way of public administration and management. New
ICT-related courses such as Developing Multimedia Applications and Information Technology
Management in the Public Sector are offered to assist the MTCP member countries increase their
efficiency in the context of increasing globalization.
During their stay in Malaysia, all MTCP participants are provided with board and lodging
in addition to a small stipend. To provide them with a wider perspective of the Malaysian
development, these participants are taken for short study visits to relevant projects outside of
the Klang Valley where the majority of the training institutions and government agencies are
located. The Department of Drainage and Irrigation conducts its course on irrigation system
management at its National Water Management Training Centre in Kota Bharu, Kelantan while
the Department of Fishery conducts its course on brackish water aquaculture at its National
Prawn Fry and Research Centre in Kuala Muda, Kedah.
Since 1992, the MTCP also offered long-term training to about 280 participants who
obtained post-graduate degrees at the Masters and Ph.D. levels at five local public universities.
These universities are the International Islamic University (UIA), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
(UKM), University Malaya (UM), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Universiti Sains Malaysia
(USM). These scholarships have been awarded to participants in areas such as economics,
computer science, social science, accounting, business administration, chemistry, biology,
biophysics, pharmacy, education and engineering.
The prerequisite for consideration under this MTCP programme is prior acceptance of
the participant by the local university. In this way, the high standards and quality of the higher
institutions of learning in Malaysia are maintained. Selection of the MTCP candidates is by a
special committee comprising representatives from the EPU, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the
Public Services Department and the local universities.
The MTCP also organized study visits and attachment programmes for many requesting
countries. The study visits are usually for a duration of one to two weeks while attachments
are for a slightly longer period. From 1981 to 2001, Malaysia received a total of 1,205 participants
under these programmes which provided them with the Malaysian experience in a wide range
of areas such as development planning, poverty eradication, investment promotion, privatization,
public administration and project planning.
Although the majority of these study visits are organized under the MTCP, there are
also those that are organized by MTCP in cooperation with third parties such as the UNDP,
UNOPS and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) as well as those that are self-financed by the
sending country. The MTCP extends its cooperation to these study visits in the planning and
organization of their local programmes at the various government agencies.
New activities are constantly added to the areas of cooperation which serve to enhance
and expand the scope of the programme. In recent years, the MTCP has actively participated in
the provision of advisory services through the dispatch of experts to several requesting countries.
Among the objectives of this programme is to promote income-generating activities in order to
eradicate poverty. Since 1992, experts in agriculture, banking, anti-corruption, energy as well as
a legal advisor and technicians have been sent under the MTCP, respectively, to Oman, Namibia,
Fiji, Tanzania, Kazakhstan and Cambodia. Three micro-credit experts from USM and Amanah Ikhtiar
Malaysia (AIM) were also dispatched to South Africa to assist the Women's Development Bank.
An increasing number of such activities are in the provision of advisory services, especially
in development planning. Several teams of experts led by officers from the EPU were sent to
Ghana, Kenya and the Kyrgyz Republic in 1997, Cambodia, the Kyrgyz Republic and Algeria in
2000 and Sudan in 2001/2002. These missions assisted the countries concerned to formulate
their long-term planning framework and to carry out focused programmes for investment
promotion, poverty eradication and budgeting.
Malaysia also extends on a selective basis, project-type assistance to countries
facing hardships of transition or have need of humanitarian aid. Such assistance has been
provided to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa
and the Kyrgyz Republic.
:
To ease the process of resettlement of war refugees, MTCP contributed towards the
costs of rebuilding and rehabilitation of housing and infrastructure in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Malaysia also provided low-cost housing to South Africa which served as a good model for
public housing. In the promotion of income-raising activities in Malawi, a two-year integrated
agriculture project was established in 2000 with expertise from the Malaysian Agriculture Research
Institute (MARDI) which not only includes the establishment of a Project Management Office
(PMO) but also the training of the locals in the various aspects of integrated farm management.
Third Country Technical Cooperation
Realizing the constraint of resources including specific technical expertise, the MTCP
also actively collaborates with international organizations such as the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP), Economic Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), United Nations
Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA),
Colombo Plan, Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation (CFTC) and the Asia-Pacific
Development for Information Programme (APDIP) through Third Country Training Programmes
(TCTP). These TCTP are organized through partnerships with several local agencies such as the
National Institute of Public Administration (INTAN), Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations
(IDFR), UPM, UM, the Japan-Malaysia Training Institute (JMTI) and the Centre for Instructor Advanced
Skills Training (CIAST). The areas of training are varied and include technical and skills training
in computer networking technology, welding, electrical and electronic system servicing as well
as diplomacy, small-scale industries development and promotion of a healthy environment.
With the aim of accelerating the pace of reconstruction and rehabilitation in Cambodia,
the MTCP in cooperation with the ASEAN-Japan Tripartite Joint Development Project, dispatched
53 technicians from GIAT-MARA to Cambodia between 1994 to 2002. These technicians provided
skills training to war veterans and displaced persons in three Cambodian districts in the field
of electrical installation, motorcycle repair, metal fabrication, brick laying, tiling, carpentry and
plumbing. With these skills, it is expected that the recipients would be engaged in income-
generating activities, thus assisting in poverty alleviation.
The W1TCP embodies the spirit of Smart Partnership practices whereby, through the exchange of
experiences which is a two-way process, Malaysia can also learn from the collective wisdom of other
developing countries. Such bilateral exchanges are able to spawn win-win situations where the
combined efforts of partners can change the face of development and build a better quality of life.
Recognizing the need to meet the demands of a changing environment, the MTCP is
constantly reviewed with the addition of new courses, especially in information communications
technology (ICT). Programmes are expanded and new activities designed to meet the needs and
priorities of participating countries while continuing the emphasis on human resource development.
A reciprocation of technical expertise by participating countries will also be promoted, especially in
areas which are better developed in partner countries. The modes of cooperation will also be tailored
to encourage more third party cooperation as well as greater involvement of the private sector.
The spirit of Smart Partnership,
is a workable entity that promises pro
Dato' Seri Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad
Prime Minister of Malaysia
Langkawi Internationa Dialogue (LID 2000)
19 November 2000
Closer cooperation will also be encouraged between the MTCP and the private sector
in order to provide training in areas where the private sector has the expertise as well as to
play a catalytic role for the promotion of trade and investments in new and emerging markets.
The Malaysian South-South Corporation (MASSCORP) established in 1992, as a consortium
comprising 85 Malaysian share holders, plays an important role as a link between Malaysia and
South countries. MASSCORP has established the Malaysia-Chile Business Council and Malaysia-
South Africa Business Council in Malaysia as well as the Malaysian Business Centre in Kampala,
Uganda in August 2001. MASSCORP also plays a catalytic role for exploring and promoting trade
and investment opportunities in new markets, particularly the emerging markets. It also acts as
a vehicle for trade promotions, exports and investments as well as the transfer of technical and
management expertise to the host countries. As a shareholder of Sibexlink Sdn Bhd, a company
established under the aegis of the South Investment, Trade and Technology Data Exchange Centre
(SITTDEX) whose membership include 615 countries, MASSCORP also acts as a business information
dissemination centre to enhance linkages among the 615 and African member countries.
*' UP W- W
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