Consider This: Malaysia & BRICS (Part 2) — Building the Right Foundation?
Malaysia is set to be officially recognised as one of 13 nations added to BRICS as a partner country, though not as full members yet. But as Malaysia joins this diverse and at times divided group, questions remain about what the country stands to gain—and what it risks. On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks with Tan Sri Dr Munir Majid, Visiting Senior Fellow at the Centre for International Affairs, Diplomacy and Strategy at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Fri Oct 25 2024
Consider This: Malaysia & BRICS (Part 1) — Building the Right Foundation?
Malaysia is set to be officially recognised as one of 13 nations added to BRICS as a partner country, though not as full members yet. But as Malaysia joins this diverse and at times divided group, questions remain about what the country stands to gain—and what it risks. On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks with Elina Noor, Senior Fellow, of the Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Fri Oct 25 2024
Consider This: Healthcare — Caring About Cancer
As Breast Cancer Awareness Month puts the spotlight on early detection and prevention, it's also a reminder of the growing cancer burden in Malaysia and the broader challenges we face in cancer care. How far have we come, and what more needs to be done? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks to Dr Murallitharan Munisamy, Managing Director of the National Cancer Society Malaysia. In 2022 he was one of three winners of the Global Best Cancer CEO award by the Union for International Cancer Control.
Wed Oct 23 2024
Consider This: Budget 2025 (Part 2) — The Right Dose for Healthcare?
The Health Ministry has been allocated RM45.3 billion in Budget 2025, which is the second highest after the education ministry. It’s an almost 10% increase from the previous budget. Will it be enough to address the many issues affecting Malaysia’s public healthcare system? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks with Azrul Mohd Khalib, Chief Executive of the Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy, a healthcare policy research and advocacy outfit.
Mon Oct 21 2024
Consider This: Budget 2025 (Part 1) — The Right Dose for Healthcare?
The Health Ministry has been allocated RM45.3 billion in Budget 2025, which is the second highest after the education ministry. It’s an almost 10% increase from the previous budget. Will it be enough to address the many issues affecting Malaysia’s public healthcare system? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks with Dr Farhan Rusli, Fellow at the Institute for Research and Development of Policy.
Mon Oct 21 2024
Consider This: Budget 2025 (Part 2) — Balancing Progress & Prudence?
Budget 2025 was tabled in Dewan Rakyat today, and now the crucial evaluation begins. Does #Belanjawan2025 successfully balance progress and prudence? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks to Danial Rahman, CEO of Asian Strategy & Leadership Institute (ASLI), and Doris Liew, Economist & Assistant Research Manager at IDEAS Malaysia's Public Finance Unit.
Fri Oct 18 2024
Consider This: Budget 2025 (Part 1) — Balancing Progress & Prudence?
Budget 2025 was tabled in Dewan Rakyat today, and now the crucial evaluation begins. Does #Belanjawan2025 successfully balance progress and prudence? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks to Danial Rahman, CEO of Asian Strategy & Leadership Institute (ASLI), and Doris Liew, Economist & Assistant Research Manager at IDEAS Malaysia's Public Finance Unit.
Fri Oct 18 2024
Consider This: Social Security — Broadening Protections for Tomorrow
Ahead of the tabling of #Belanjawan2025, how well have the social security measures from #Belanjawan2024 protected Malaysians from economic vulnerability? Have they truly delivered, or is there a need for more targeted reforms? Tonight on #ConsiderThis, Melisa Idris speaks with Professor Datuk Norma Mansor, Director of Universiti Malaya’s Social Wellbeing Research Centre, and Balqais Yusoff, Head of the Policy and Strategy Department at EPF.
Thu Oct 17 2024
Consider This: Myanmar Crisis (Part 2) — Malaysia’s Leadership Testing as ASEAN Chair
As Malaysia takes over the chair of ASEAN in 2025, the region faces a critical test: the deepening crisis in Myanmar. Despite the 5-Point Consensus agreed upon by ASEAN leaders in 2021, little progress has been made in resolving the ongoing violence and humanitarian disaster gripping the country. Can Malaysia’s chairmanship reshape ASEAN’s approach to Myanmar and bring about real change? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks with Thomas Daniel, senior fellow in the Foreign Policy and Security Studies programme at ISIS Malaysia.
Tue Oct 15 2024
Consider This: Myanmar Crisis (Part 1) — Malaysia’s Leadership Testing as ASEAN Chair
s Malaysia takes over the chair of ASEAN in 2025, the region faces a critical test: the deepening crisis in Myanmar. Despite the 5-Point Consensus agreed upon by ASEAN leaders in 2021, little progress has been made in resolving the ongoing violence and humanitarian disaster gripping the country. Can Malaysia’s chairmanship reshape ASEAN’s approach to Myanmar and bring about real change? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks with Lilianne Fan, who is part of the Malaysian Advisory Group on Myanmar. She’s also the Co-Founder and International Director of the regional humanitarian organisation Geutanyoe Foundation.
Tue Oct 15 2024
Consider This: Energy Transition — Powering ASEAN
ASEAN is at a pivotal moment in its energy transition journey, with countries across the region setting ambitious goals to decarbonize their economies. Malaysia, too, has committed to significant reforms, but how do we stack up against our neighbours? And as we assume the chair of ASEAN, what role can we play in driving a coordinated regional effort towards energy transition? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks to Kavita Gandhi, Executive Director of the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore.
Mon Oct 14 2024
The Future is Female: Gender Equality - Fathers, Families & The Future of Malaysia’s Workforce
On this episode of #TheFutureIsFemale Melisa Idris speaks to Dr Alice Evans, Senior Lecturer in the Social Science of Development at King's College London, and is currently writing a book titled ‘The Great Gender Divergence’ which aims to explain why some societies have become more gender equal than others. Dr Evans was a speaker at Khazanah Megatrends Forum 2024 on the topic of boosting the Malaysian workforce.
Sun Oct 13 2024
Consider This: Education — Bringing PAC Experience to Education Reform
The Ministry of Education recently launched the Strategic Education Plan 2024-2030. Are we witnessing the beginning of real educational reform, or will these plans on paper face the same implementation challenges that have persisted for decades? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks to YB Wong Kah Woh, Deputy Minister of Education.
Wed Oct 09 2024
Consider This: Middle East Crisis (Part 2) - Is Regional War Imminent?
The Israeli military has continued to carry out air raids across Lebanon, while also intensifying its strikes across Gaza over the past 48 hours. This after Iran launched a missile attack at Israel in response to Israeli assassinations of top Hamas and Hezbollah leaders. Amid the soaring violence and escalating tensions, how close are we to a regional war in the middle east? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks to Muath Seyam, Senior Fellow at the Asia Middle East Centre for Research and Dialogue.
Fri Oct 04 2024
Consider This: Middle East Crisis (Part 1) - Is Regional War Imminent?
The Israeli military has continued to carry out air raids across Lebanon, while also intensifying its strikes across Gaza over the past 48 hours. This after Iran launched a missile attack at Israel in response to Israeli assassinations of top Hamas and Hezbollah leaders. Amid the soaring violence and escalating tensions, how close are we to a regional war in the middle east? On this episode of #ConsiderThis Melisa Idris speaks to Dr Ferooze Ali, Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law and International Relations at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin in Terengganu.
Fri Oct 04 2024
UN says Taliban detained journalists over 250 times in Afghanistan since takeover
The Taliban-led foreign ministry denies having arrested that number of journalists and added that those arrested had committed a crime.
Wed Nov 27 2024
TikTok becoming app of choice for criminals promoting investment scams - Police
Many users continue to be tricked and scammed even though police have repeatedly issued warnings about scams proliferating on social media.
Wed Nov 27 2024
MOE’s mental health screening identifies students with emotional challenges
Deputy Minister of Education says, those identified with severe emotional issues undergo screening twice a year.
Wed Nov 27 2024
Israel, Hezbollah agree to ceasefire brokered by US and France, to take effect Wednesday
Israel will gradually withdraw its forces over 60 days as Lebanon's army takes control of territory near its border with Israel to ensure that Hezbollah does not rebuild its infrastructure there.
Wed Nov 27 2024
'No one will win a trade war,' China says after Trump tariff threat
Donald Trump says he would impose the tariffs until China stops the flow of illegal drugs, particularly fentanyl, into the United States.
Tue Nov 26 2024
What has caused Pakistan's deadly clashes between police and supporters of Imran Khan?
Topping the demands of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party is the release of all its leaders, including Khan, who has been jailed on a series of corruption charges since August 2023.
Tue Nov 26 2024
One woman or girl killed every 10 minutes by intimate partner or family member - UN
The report highlights that "60 per cent of all female homicides" are committed by "people closely related to them".
Tue Nov 26 2024
Sweden urges Chinese ship to return for undersea cable investigation
Two subsea cables, one linking Finland and Germany and the other connecting Sweden to Lithuania, were damaged in less than 24 hours.
Tue Nov 26 2024
[COLUMNIST] Building more highways won’t solve traffic congestion - reducing demand will
It is clear that adding more lanes and highways doesn't work, because we are still attempting the same approach to solve the issue.
Tue Nov 26 2024
Hyundai to invest RM2.16 bil in Malaysia through strategic partnership with INOKOM
This investment includes efforts to upgrade INOKOM's existing assembly capacity to meet Hyundai's automotive needs.
Tue Nov 26 2024