MOSTI INTRODUCES SCA FUNDING OF UP TO RM1 MLN TO BOOST R&D COMMERCIALISATION

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 5 (Bernama) -- The Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI) will introduce new funding based on a Structured Commercialisation Accelerator (SCA) approach, providing financing of up to RM1 million for each high-impact project, with applications to open in the first quarter of this year.

Deputy Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Mohammad Yusof Apdal said the initiative aims to ensure that research and development (R&D) outcomes can be accelerated to the market stage and benefit real users.

“Technology R&D is no longer an option, but a national strategic necessity. R&D is a key driver of productivity, industrial competitiveness, the creation of new technologies and the development of a highly skilled talent pool,” he said when winding up the debate on the motion of thanks for the Royal Address for MOSTI in the Dewan Rakyat today.

He said the National R&D Report 2023 shows that the country’s R&D investment has yet to reach its target, with the gross R&D expenditure to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio at only 1.01 per cent in 2022 compared with the 2.5 per cent target by 2030 as outlined in the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP).

However, he said private sector R&D spending rose significantly from 34.2 per cent in 2020 to 51.4 per cent in 2022, making the business sector the largest contributor to the country’s R&D expenditure.

In terms of human capital, Mohammad Yusof said the number of researchers increased by 72.5 per cent from 53,205 in 2020 to 91,789 in 2022, but the country still needs about 220,000 researchers to meet the benchmark of 200 researchers for every 10,000 workers.

In this regard, he said MOSTI is implementing several initiatives, including restructuring research grants with a focus on mission-oriented R&D, strengthening industry-academia collaboration through a co-creation approach and expanding the use of matching grants to encourage private investment in high-impact R&D.

In addition, Mohammad Yusof said the Malaysia Innovation Index (MII) has been introduced as a strategic policy instrument to provide an innovation profile for each state and assist in planning more targeted R&D interventions, while reducing geographical imbalances in R&D that are currently concentrated in the Klang Valley.

He also informed that MOSTI, through MIMOS, is developing capabilities to detect deepfake content in stages covering images, video and audio to help authorities address the misuse of such technology for fraud and the spread of false information.

-- BERNAMA