Publications

Rights, Representation and Reform: The Political Struggles of Persons with Disabilities in Malaysia

Country Report with a Difference: Malaysia

The report highlights the challenges faced by persons with disabilities in Malaysia’s political sphere. Despite making up 15% of the population, persons with disabilities encounter barriers such as inaccessible polling stations, a lack of braille ballots and sign language interpreters, and insufficient representation. Since 2007, only four senators with disabilities have been appointed to the 70-seat Dewan Negara. This representation (or lack thereof) remains inadequate for such a significant demographic. Although Malaysia has ratified the CRPD and enacted the Persons with Disabilities Act 2008, enforcement remains weak. The ASEAN Enabling Masterplan 2025 provides a framework for inclusion, but more progress is needed. As Malaysia chairs ASEAN in 2025, it must lead efforts to ensure full political inclusion for persons with disabilities. As a young and developing democracy, Malaysia has the potential to lead the region in inclusivity, demonstrating that every voice—regardless of ability—counts in building a just and equitable society.

Call for Paper: Women in ASEAN Economies

Women in ASEAN: The Impact of Women’s Inclusion in Policymaking and the Cost of Women’s Exclusion in Economies

What are the impacts of inclusive policymaking and what are the costs of exclusion?

The Economic Race in Southeast Asia – and why Europe is falling behind

How Europe can compete with China, Japan, and the United States?

In rapidly emerging Southeast Asia, global economic powers are vying for influence. While China, the United States, and Japan have strategically repositioned themselves in the region, Europe risks falling behind. What unites these three nations is their use of various models of cooperation between government and business as part of a comprehensive strategy to support their companies' market entry into Southeast Asia. Europe should learn from the strategic adjustments of its competitors and align its political measures more closely with the interests of European businesses in the region.

De-Risking, but where to?

The Emerging ASEAN countries as an alternative to China

The German economy should become more diversified. However, how and where such de-risking shall be implemented remains unclear. In search of suitable partners, both politics and business often turn their attention to the emerging economies of Southeast Asia. The dynamic growth of the so-called Emerging ASEAN (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam) offers a seemingly promising alternative to the large neighbour China. However, a look at the economic data shows that the diversification potential in terms of Southeast Asia’s emerging markets is limited.

Environment, Social and Governance for SMEs Resilience

Case Insights for a Sustainable Future

This report offers a panoramic view of the sustainability journey of various Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), from traditional enterprises to innovative digital start-ups, in Malaysia that have reimagined their operations with a sustainable lens. These case studies provide a comprehensive perspective on the integration of Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) practices into different business models and their pivotal role in enhancing business resilience and competitiveness.

Inclusion in the Education Sector

A Look into Malaysia

According to the World Health Organisation and the World Bank, an estimate of one billion people around the world experience some form of disability. Of those, approximately 93 to 150 million of them are children. Over the decades, there have been numerous studies that indicate these children are less likely to go to school than other children and when they do attend school, it is likely to be in a segregated setting. In Malaysia, there have been government initiatives to improve the state of education for learners with disabilities. However, Malaysian advocates of disability rights continue to lament the mismatch between existing policies and practice, and the needs and requirements of the learners with disabilities.

Challenges for Women in Political Parties in Malaysia and Acceleration Strategies to Leadership in Politics

by Ummu Atiyah Ahmad Zakuan

The findings presented in this comprehensive study illustrate that the challenges faced by women in the political parties reflect similar challenges to those faced by women in the past. The reality of women in the political parties have not changed much over time, which shed light on why the political domain appears as the biggest gender gap compared to other domains. Despite educational advancement in the country, women continue to lag behind men in politics.

Malaysia’s Public Institutional Architecture, Rural Agriculture - SMEs and Food Security

Ungku Aziz Centre for Development Studies - University of Malaya investigates the structural impediments that have hindered the growth of the agricultural sector in Malaysia.

This report addresses issues in Malaysia’s public institutional architecture pertaining to agriculture and agro-based SMEs. It investigates the inability of numerous policies to increase Malaysia’s agricultural production and food security. This project thoroughly scrutinizes the roadblocks in delivering policies effectively to farmers and livestock owners as current and past agricultural policies lack effective implementation due to structural issues.

SME Sustainability Action Guide

This guide has been designed specifically to provide guidance to SMEs looking to embed ESG into their business strategies and processes.

In the SME Sustainability Action Guide developed by UN Global Compact Network Malaysia & Brunei (UNGCMYB), you will find compelling reasons for SMEs to adopt sustainability as well as the direct and indirect benefits that will keep your business going and protect the planet at the same time. This guide is tailored specifically for SMEs, and is supported with real life examples of sustainability initiatives taken by some Malaysian SMEs and how they have gained from this venture.

Substantive Representation of Women in Asian Parliaments

Combining data from nearly 100 interviews with national parliamentarians from ten Asian countries, the contributors to this book analyze and evaluate the advancement of gender equality in Asia.