Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), and Yunus Emre Institute (YEI), Türkiye, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Bosphorus, Istanbul, recently.

The MoU was signed by UMS Vice-Chancellor, Professor Datuk Dr. Kasim Hj. Mansor and the President of YEI, Prof. Dr. Şeref Ateş.

The signing ceremony was witnessed by the Head of State for Sabah, who is also The Chancellor of UMS, Tun Haji Juhar Haji Mahiruddin.

According to Dr. Kasim, the MoU will benefit both parties, especially in areas involving education and research.

“More importantly, we sincerely look forward to a meaningful and long-term collaboration between YEI and UMS.

“We believe that through a close collaboration with our international partners, such as YEI, we can further enhance our commitment to excellence in teaching, research, and innovation,” he said in his speech.

Dr. Kasim informed that the main areas of the MoU, includes the exchange of student and staff to broaden academic, professional, and cultural cooperation between the two institutions.

“Besides that, UMS and YEI will collaborate in research and development activities, including the sharing of resources where possible.

“The MoU also covers any other areas of prospective collaboration or cooperation which are deemed necessary by either party that shall be mutually agreed upon by both parties.

“Hopefully, through this MoU, it will bring mutual benefit and cooperation to the two countries, Malaysia and Türkiye, and most importantly, improve our close cooperation in the field of culture and language,” Dr. Kasim added.

The signing of this MoU also marks the possibility of introducing the Turkish language as one of the language components under the Foreign Language Cluster for undergraduate students in UMS.

Also present during the event were Toh Puan Hajah Norlidah R.M Jasni; Consul General Consulate of Malaysia, Istanbul, Tengku Mohd Dzaraif Raja Abdul Kadir; Chairman Board of Directors (BOD) UMS, Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Abdul Rahman Dahlan, Member UMS BOD, Samasuddin Haji Yusop; and UMS Registrar, Luqman Ridha Anwar.

YEI is an established Turkish Cultural Centre that strives to promote Türkiye, its cultural heritage, Turkish language, culture, art, science, and academic research, in order to improve the friendship and cultural exchange between Türkiye and other countries

The 3rd Borneo Quality of Life Conference, themed "Quality of Life Across All Ages," will take place at Universiti Malaysia Sabah next week from May 23rd-26th, 2023.

The conference will also be held partially online, allowing participants from across the globe to join.

The conference will cover a wide range of topics related to quality of life, including issues such as hunger, food security, sustainable agriculture, noncommunicable diseases, poverty, education, decent work, and economic growth.

Discussions will also centre around sustainable living environments, promoting good health and well-being, human capital development, and decent work and economic growth.

There are a total of 65 unique presentations, covering areas as diverse as statelessness and education, rehabilitation and nutrition, ancient and current addictions, ritual responses of traditional societies to Covid-19, and an entire symposium focusing on the cycle of pregnancy and quality of life issues surrounding it.

Last call registrations for the conference are still open, with day pass options available for those who only wish to come for a day.

In conjunction with the conference, UMS has slated four very exciting pre-conference workshops.

Firstly, a parenting workshop that is helmed by three high quality parenting speakers: Alison Wong, principal of Jolly Learners, a renowned early childhood education provider in Kota Kinabalu; Jessica Rine, author of “My Feelings My Friends”; and Derek Chong, an ICA certified professional life and leadership coach.

This workshop will focus on engaging in sharing and discussion about parenting strategies that will take them through the different stage of child development.

Also, there will be an upcycling workshop helmed by Micheal Yap, founder of Seagrass Guardians and coordinator of Tanjung Aru Marine Ecosystem Centre, and Japson Wong, an upcycling artist and founder of JF Production.

This workshop includes glass crushing to make bricks, operating the plastic recycling machine, and making of coffee capsule bugs.

Closer to home – we have two psychologically flavoured workshops happening back-to-back at the UMS Library.

From 8am-12pm, there will be an Alcohol Prevention workshop featuring Associate Prof. Dr Nicholas Pang, a psychiatrist and vice president of the Association of the Prevention of Alcohol Misuse Malaysia, together with Dr David Tan, psychiatrist, and Ms Sharon Sharmini, Head of Department of Psychiatry, HUMS.

In the afternoon from 2-5pm there will be a special workshop on mindfulness by Prof Dr Helen Benedict Lasimbang, director of Hospital UMS, who will be delivering modules from her book on mindfulness – the first Malay language mindfulness book published.

Registration for the conference is still open, and we would like to encourage registrations as well for the preconference sessions mentioned.

Don't miss this chance to be part of a community that is committed to improving the quality of life for all ages in the region.

For more information about the conference and to sign up for preconference workshops and the conference proper, please visit the conference website at https://bqolc.ums.edu.my/ or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Sabah China Chamber of Commerce (SCCC) recently visited Faculty of Business, Economics and Accountancy (FBEA), Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) for a discussion regarding potential collaboration between universities in Hubei Province, China and FBEA UMS.

The visit by SCCC was led by President, Datuk Frankie Liew, and joined by Vice President cum Women Entrepreneurs Chairlady, Tan Siew Ling; Director of Public Relations, Datuk Simon Teoh; Committee Members, Joanis Yee and Stella Chong; Women Entrepreneurs representative, Jenice Tan Wan Ling and Pamela Tseu.

Also joined the delegation were Chairman of Malaysia China Supplier Association (MCSA) and Chairman of Hubei Province – Sabah China Chamber of Commerce (SCCC), Zhou Fang Fang who are from Hubei Province, China.

Apart from the Chambers, Zhou is also the Executive Director of Skin Regenerative Cells HUKM National Hospital Malaysia, and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Clara International Group Cooperation.

The visit was welcomed by Dr. Noor Fzlinda Fabeil representing the faculty Dean, Associate Professor Dr. Mohd Rahimie Abd. Karim.

Discussions held including potential mobility and exchange activities of students and academics between the FBEA UMS and universities in Hubei Province, China.

FBEA academics who also joined the session including Associate Professor Dr. Janice Nga Lay Hui; FBEA Coordinator for International Mobility, Datu Razali Datuk Datu Hj. Eranza; Dr. Siti Nor Bayaah Ahmad, Dr. Jaratin Lily, Dr. Christina Wong Sing Yun, and Assistant Registrar, Nurazean Sheir.

After discussions, the Chamber was invited to enjoy the Raya open house organized by fellow academics of FBEA.

Visits continued to UMS Global Office, and brief tour around the campus. Delegates enjoyed the brief chat with Global Office and enjoyed the beautiful landscape of UMS and fascinated by the development of various faculties and sustainable facilities in UMS.

Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) made history by winning the most number of gold awards at the International Invention, Innovation and Technology Exhibition (ITEX) 2023.

UMS entered the competition with 20 ground-breaking innovations, which earned them 13 gold prizes, six silver awards, and four special awards.

According to UMS, these achievements were resulted from the dedication and trainings inspired by the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Datuk Dr. Kasim Hj. Mansor and the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research and Innovation), Prof. Ir. Dr. Rosalam Hj. Sarbatly.

“In addition to the impressive medal count, UMS also won several special awards. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Jidon @ Adrian Janaun won the Malaysia Innovative Product Award (MIPA) in the Equipment, Electronics, Machinery category for his innovation, the Residual Oil Extractor (ROE).

“He also won the Best Invention Award (Top 3 Grand Winner) for the same product.

“Other special award winner from UMS include Dr. Norhayati Ayob, who won the Best Invention Award in the Household Product category for her innovation, the Lapohan Artistry,” said UMS in a statement here today.

With such a remarkable achievement, UMS has once again proven its commitment to innovation and research.

“Congratulations to all the winners and UMS for their outstanding performance at ITEX 2023.

“UMS, through the Innovation and Commercialisation Management Centre (ICMC), will continue the efforts to translate the awards to commercialisation,” the statement added.

For the records, ITEX is an annual exhibition that brings together inventors, innovators, and technology entrepreneurs from around the world to showcase their products and services.

It is one of the largest exhibitions of its kind in Southeast Asia that was held on 11 - 12 May 2023 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC).