The Breakfast Grille

Once part of the Soviet Union, Georgia has since transformed itself into a modern state, ranked by the Heritage Foundation as the 12th freest in terms of economic freedom. H.E. Nikoloz Apkhazava, Ambassador of Georgia to Malaysia discusses growing opportunities for Malaysians to do business there as it is strategically located at the intersection of Europe and Asia. Georgia however continues to be...

The oil and gas services and equipment (OGSE) sector contributed RM65 billion to the Malaysian economy in 2019. However, the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated structural flaws in the industry, which the government aims to address via the National OGSE Blueprint launched in April. Is this enough to revitalise Malaysian OGSE? We sit down with Mohamed Yazid Ja'far, the CEO of the MPRC, the coordinati...

The penetration of Takaful insurance in Malaysia is only 16% but with 10 other competitors, the market is very competitive. So what plans does Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Keluarga Berhad have to be the number 1 player in both family and general takaful? Dato' Sri Mohamed Hassan Kamil, Group CEO tells us and if inorganic is the way to go. Image credit: Syarikat Takaful Malaysia See omnystudio.com/lis...

How much more upside for Bursa listed Censof? The financial software solutions provider caught the attention of investors a month ago when Microsoft announced that Censof would be one of its partners in their $1 billion data centre investment in Malaysia. The stock jumped 26% when the initiative was announced, and jumped again following their Q4 earnings reports. Image credit: Censof See omnystudi...

Roshni Jayantilal, CEO of the Malaysian Institute of Corporate Governance (MICG) speaks to us on the Breakfast Grille about the challenges in maintaining good governance standards during a pandemic, and their efforts to encourage SMEs to hop on the governance bandwagon. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As MDEC celebrates its 25th anniversary, does this government agency still have relevance in helping Malaysia achieve its lofty goal of being a digital economy? Surina Shukri, the CEO answers that question and also addresses a news report that she will be replaced. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Charles Kenny, the author of "The Plague Cycle: The Unending War Between Humanity and Infectious Disease" discusses the downside of some measures to fight the pandemic, and how global rules like patents and aid-giving could be rewritten to foster more equitable development and a more even response in managing crisis across the world. Kenny is also a Senior Fellow and the Director of Technology and...

As Malaysia prepares to celebrate a second Hari Raya under a Movement Control Order, Dato' Sri Meer Habib, the Managing Director of Habib Jewels, talks about how one of the country's most established jewelry companies is coping with this once-in-a-lifetime event. Image credit: Habib Jewels See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bursa Malaysia listed Advancecon Holdings has been awarded a total of five subcontracts worth around RM186 million for the ECRL project since the middle of last year. Beyond that it recently secured a quota of 26MW under the fourth cycle of the Large Scale Solar (LSS4) project. What else does this earthworks and civil engineering services provider have in store? We speak to Advancecon Executive Di...

While the Covid-19 pandemic is first and foremost a health crisis, the resulting effects have devastated the global economy and students' education for the years to come. But education was already due for a reckoning before the pandemic hit- was this just accelerating the inevitable? We speak to computer scientist and educational theorist Professor Sugata Mitra on the Breakfast Grille to discuss t...

How will listed education group SEG International adapt to a tougher operating environment, an oversaturated market, and the push to digital? Roshan Kanesan explores this and more with Hew Moi Lan, Group CEO and Executive Director of SEG International Berhad. SEG International is the only listed pure play education company on the main board, and runs the SEGi Group of Colleges. See omnystudio.com/...

Paul Sanda, the Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner of Austrade Malaysia & Brunei discusses how Covid-19 and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) could increase investment and trade between Australia and Malaysia. He also comments on the tense relationship between Australia and China, and how it might force countries like Malaysia to take sides. See omnystudio.com/listen...

Infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) company Invest Energy Group wants to invest RM2.2 billion in the region over the next 5-7years in renewable energy projects, aiming to reach a generating capacity of up to 750MW. What's the plan to achieve this and where is this funding coming from? Also, with data centres increasing looking to renewable energy, will Invest Energy be looking for opportunities wit...

DAP tasted power for a brief 22 months but is back in opposition. What are their next steps as Malaysia heads towards the next general elections? Is this party with the most seats in Parliament reconsidering their coalition partners and will they even join hands with UMNO? Questions answered by former Transport Minister and current National Organising Secretary Anthony Loke who perhaps might be th...

DAP tasted power for a brief 22 months but is back in opposition. What are their next steps as Malaysia heads towards the next general elections? Is this party with the most seats in Parliament reconsidering their coalition partners and will they even join hands with UMNO? Questions answered by x perhaps the future Secretary-General of DAP and former Transport Minister, YB Anthony Loke. See omnyst...

Wee Eng Kong, Managing Director of the construction services firm Tuju Setia, is Bursa Malaysia's first main market listing in 2021, set to go public on May 19. Amongst others, he discusses Tuju's business, outlook, tender book and customers while fielding questions on its IPO timing, corporate governance, valuations, safety measures and cost structure. Image Credit: Tuju Setia See omnystudio.com/...

Jing Tan, the Regional General Manager of International SOS talks to us about how this health and security firm is evolving throughout the pandemic, including how they are harnessing technology to develop dynamic advisory services to clients amid rapid environmental and geopolitical shifts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Social Security Organization (SOCSO), also known as PERKESO, has seen its role expand as the government rolled out various initiatives to help workers and companies impacted by Covid 19. How has this government agency adapted and should we consider widening the social safety net especially since the nature of work has changed. Its CEO, Dato' Sri Dr. Mohammed Azman tells us whilst also divulging ho...

Transboundary waters fuel agriculture and support thousands of local communities, but can also be a point of conflict between the countries that share them. But what are the factors influencing these conflicts? It's important to understand this, seeing as we have a transboundary water conflict in our own backyard: the Mekong River Basin. We speak to Dr Naho Mirumachi, Associate Professor in Enviro...

Having survived the onslaught of smaller, faster startups and the ravages of Covid-19, Malaysian logistics and delivery company GDEX Bhd has announced a series of expansion plans in hopes of at least repeating the 21.6% in CAGR it achieved since the turn of the millennium. Chief Executive Officer of GDex Bhd, Teong Teck Lean discusses. Image credit: Shutterstock.com and GDEX See omnystudio.com/lis...

According to the Mckinsey Global Energy Perspective 2021 report, it's estimated that more than 50% of global power generation will come from renewable sources by 2035. We speak to Ko Chuan Zhen, CEO of Plus Solar, about the path to tapping into more solar power in Malaysia, charging up the local Renewable Energy industry, and making money along the way. Image credit: Plus Solar See omnystudio.com/...

As oil majors around the world attempt to plan for the future and diversify away from oil, PETRONAS says that the establishment of their New Energy division "places them in prime position to pursue domestic and international renewables market share to power the world with cleaner energy." What are New Energy's mandate and timeline, and how will they get there? We speak to Dr Jay Mariyappan to find...

With the threat of the 4th wave of Covid-19 looming over a slow vaccine roll-out, can the Japanese economy stay in its recovery trajectory? How have Malaysia-Japan bilateral relations been impacted by the pandemic? We discuss these questions and more with H.E. Oka Hiroshi, Ambassador of Japan to Malaysia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the multiple stimulus packages rolled out to create jobs and revive the economy, questions arise as to how it should be paid for. Is the solution perhaps not new taxes but a reform of the taxation system? Dr. Veerinderjeet Singh, Chairman of Tricor Malaysia and Carmelo Ferlito, CEO of Center for Market Education (CME) weigh in with their suggestions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in...

Malaysia is no stranger to the complexities and the perils of “dirty money”, but we are far from the only country implicated in what investigations reporter and author Tom Burgis calls a "global kleptocracy." In his latest book, Burgis highlights the interconnectivity of global corruption and what it means for economies and democracies around the world. Image credit: graja / Shutt...