SHANGHAI: A private company from Sarawak and Fudan University signed a cooperation agreement on Wednesday to begin the establishment of an integrative medicine research centre to be located in Kenyalang Smart City (KSC) in Miri.

Sarawak Deputy Premier, Datuk Amar Professor Dr. Sim Kui Hian said Fudan University is among the two leading universities in China that have received Grade A recognition in integrative medicine and is among the top 50 universities in the world.

He shared that the initiative will involve three phases where Phase 1 involves the establishment of the Fudan SEA Institute of Integrative Medicine Miri Campus, followed by the establishment of the Fudan School of Medicine Miri Campus in Phase 2 and the establishment of Fudan University Miri Campus in Phase 3.

“We will continue discussions with them to make this effort a reality.

“The state government delegation is very happy with the positive development of this initiative, and we are very grateful to the Malaysian Consul General in Shanghai who has been very helpful in continuing these discussions,” he said.

He said this to UKAS after witnessing the signing ceremony of the ‘Joint Research Centre for Innovative Medical Development in Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine’ Cooperation Agreement at the university here on Wednesday.

The agreement was signed by Vice President of Fudan University, Ma Yugang and Chairman of Imasa Dinasti Sdn Bhd, Ar. Teo Ah King and witnessed by President of Fudan University, Professor Jin Li.

According to Datuk Amar Dr. Sim, the leadership of the Shanghai City Council and Fudan University also expressed support for the efforts to implement the three phases of the initiative.

Elaborating further, he is optimistic that the establishment of the medical university will help overcome the problem of the shortage of doctors in the state.

He said that Sarawak still needs about 2,000 doctors in its efforts to improve the quality of medical service delivery, especially with the state now facing an aging population.

“We still need about 2,000 doctors in Sarawak, we always need more doctors trained at UNIMAS and from other medical schools.

“I hope that with the existence of this medical school, it can help us in facing the aging population and gaining autonomy in the fields of medicine and education,” he added.

Also present were Sarawak Minister for Transport, Dato Sri Lee Kim Shin, President of the Sarawak Federation of Chinese Associations (SFCA), Dato Richard Wee, Acting Consul General of Malaysia in Shanghai, Nur Athira Hani Abdul Rahman and other guests of honour.

Earlier, Datuk Amar Dr. Sim and the state government delegation visited the Fudan University Science & Technology Innovation Museum and the Fudan University History Museum, followed by a closed-door meeting with the university's top leadership.
During the visit, they were briefed on the university's success in researching satellite technology, artificial intelligence and net-zero industrial emissions. -UKASnews