the MTCP was first initiated at the First Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Sydney in February 1978. Subsequently it was established in 1980 as a manifestation of Malaysia’s commitment to South-South cooperation: High Commissioner Ikram Ibrahim
Ansar M Bhatti
ISLAMABAD: High Commissioner of Malaysia Ikram Muhammad Ibrahim has said a total of 751 Pakistani nationals have received training under Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme (MTCP) adding over 34,000 officials from 144 countries have attended the MTCP so far.
The high commissioner announced this on the occasion of dinner he hosted for the alumni of MTCP at the Malaysia Home. A large number of alumni, members of the civil society and media attended the dinner.
The high commissioner further said both Malaysia and Pakistan enjoy excellent relations. He said due to COVID 19 the MTCP could take place this year however he hoped the program shall resume from next year.
High Commissioner Ikram Ibrahim added, the MTCP was first initiated at the First Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Sydney in February 1978. Subsequently it was established in 1980 as a manifestation of Malaysia’s commitment to South-South cooperation.
In line with the spirit of South-South cooperation, Malaysia through MTCP has been sharing its development experiences and expertise with other developing countries.
He said, the MTCP is remised on the principle that the development of a country is dependent on the quality of its human capital and resources. The human capital development t and capacity building programmes under the MCTCP reflect Malaysia’s established commitment towards promoting technical regional and sub regional cooperation, as well as nurturing collective self reliance among the developing countries.
The high commissioner went on the say, the MTCP encompasses eleven key broad areas, namely professional services, public administration and management, economy and trade, science, technology and ICT, INDUSTRIAL, FINANCE, diplomacy, health services, humanitarian, academic, education and social development.
While dilating upon the objectives of the MTCP the high commissioner said the objectives include sharing development experience with other developing countries, to strengthen bilateral relations between Malaysia and other developing countries, to encourage and promote South-South cooperation and to encourage and promote technical cooperation among the developing countries.
Throwing light on MTCP cooperation framework the high commissioner said provision of long term fellowship and scholarship for post graduate and undergraduate courses at Malaysian public universities, provision of short term specialized training for participants at various training institutions and government agencies in Malaysian and study visits and practical attachment at participating government agencies in Malaysia.
Ambassador Abdul Basit spoke on behalf of the alumni and thanked the ambassador for hosting them at his residence. Ambassador Basit said he was deeply touched with the way Malaysia had made development in various fields, when he visited this wonderful country.
It may be mentioned here that for 30 years the MTCP was under the purview of the economic planning unit of the PM department of Malaysia. Since 2010 MFA Malaysia has been the custodian agency of the programme with the aim of providing the synergy and support it requires in line with Malaysia’s foreign policy.
As the focal point, MFA Malaysia is responsible to formulate policies, fund, coordinate, monitor and evaluate the MTCP. These entail prioritizing the developing countries of strategic interests, focusing on Malaysia’s areas of expertise, offering demand-driven courses, cultivating potential participants who would later serve as friends of Malaysia fostering public private partnership and collaborating with new development partners beyond the MTCP’s traditional partners.
