By: Editor, Muslim-Science.Com

Muslim-Science.Com’s first Special Country Spotlight on Malaysian Science and Innovation is here.

This is the first in a series of Country Spotlights - with Pakistan to follow later this year and Egypt, Jordan, and Qatar planned for 2012 - and Special Topical Issues designed to bring into focus some of the most critical issues and capabilities across the Islamic World.

Will Malaysia escape the "middle income trap"? Photo: Airliners.Net

Malaysia is an apt country to kick off Muslim-Science.Com’s Country Spotlights with. Not very long ago, Malaysia was not much different from the rest of the OIC member countries in terms of education, health, science and technology, and socio-economic development. Yet, Malaysia went through at least 2 decades (1980s and 1990s) of nation building with focus on investment in its people, building infrastructure, attracting foreign direct investment, and creating a competitive manufacturing-based economy.

Malaysia became one of the Asian success stories of the 1980s and 1990s and certainly the only OIC member country that did not depend upon crude oil alone to migrate from a developing to a middle income status within this very short span of time. Today, Malaysia boasts a middle income economy with fairly high literacy levels and more than 65% of its exports comprising high technology products - primarily electronics and computing equipment.

The history behind some of these developments and the factors that were responsible for these - most notably a clear vision and a strong political and scientific leadership - are documented in Profiles in Leadership Series feature on Tan Sri Dr. Omar Abdur Rahman - Mahathir Science Advisor for sixteen and a half years during the 1980s and 1990s and - the “prime mover” behind Malaysia’s thrust into science and innovation.

While Malaysians have much to be proud of, there is a long way to go before Malaysia can realise its goal of becoming a high income country. In order to do so it is critical that it succeeds at creating an innovation-based knowledge economy.

A number of exciting developments in this respect have made this an opportunate time to discuss Malaysia’s Science and Innovation.

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