Consul General Machida's Visit to Perak State

On October 7, Mr. Shinya Machida, Consul-General of Japan in Penang, traveled to Ipoh, Perak, and visited Sunway College Ipoh. This two-year college is located within Sunway City Ipoh and forms part of the educational arm of the Sunway Group, which was established and developed over the past 50 years by Tan Sri Dato' Seri Sir Dr. Jeffery Cheah. It offers courses in Business, Accounting, Art & Design, and Hospitality. Many graduates reportedly advance to Sunway University in Kuala Lumpur. Following this, Mr. Machida visited a theme park within Sunway City and concluded the tour by viewing the “Banjaran Hot Springs Retreat,” which utilizes natural caves and hot springs. While visiting Sunway College to exchange ideas, including student exchange programs, we ended up touring the “Sunway Ecosystem” in Ipoh City. This was an unexpected outcome, but in Malaysia, where development often centers on KL and Johor, it was found highly intriguing as an initiative to prevent the decline and brain drain of a regional city like Ipoh.

On the 8th, Mr. Machida visited Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) and exchanged views with various parties, including Chancellor Ir Professor Dato’ Dr. Ewe Hon Tat. This marks the resumption of exchanges after a long hiatus, as there had been no visits from the Consulate General since 2018. Established in 2002, UTAR is a new and dynamic private comprehensive university. It actively promotes partnerships with Japanese Universities and Japanese language studies as a foreign language subject, suggesting potential areas for cooperation with the Consulate-General. Later the same day, Mr. Machida visited the Perak branch of Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology (TAR USM) and exchanged views with Dr. Joanne Yim Sau Ching, branch head and others. Established as a college in 1969, it was later elevated to a university college and formally became a university three years ago. TAR USM, which has 32,000 students in Malaysia, also has Japanese language courses and a Hospitality Faculty with cooking facilities, therefore suggesting potentials for cooperation with the Consulate General.