Petaling Jaya, 19 May 2009 – Microsoft Malaysia today announced its RM3.045 billion investment, in the form of the Microsoft DreamSpark initiative, to further develop the technology skills and spur innovation amongst 870,000 tertiary students in the country.
This DreamSpark investment of RM3.045 billion follows on from Microsoft Malaysia’s previous commitment of RM500 million for its BizSpark program to nurture local start-up companies and technopreneurs made late last year – bringing the world’s largest software company’s investments in Malaysia to approximately RM3.5 billion announced in the last six months. 
Its Managing Director Yasmin Mahmood said that the newly launched DreamSpark initiative is part of a joint initiative between Microsoft and the Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE). The DreamSpark initiative will provide students with free access to current Microsoft software developer and designer tools, such as Visual Studio Pro, Expression Studio, XNA Game Studio2.0, SQL Server Developer Edition and many other software products and tools from the Microsoft portfolio.
“DreamSpark is part of Microsoft’s commitment to develop human capital among students in Malaysia. We are confident these students will benefit from this program as it will help them realize their potential, in both their academic life and future careers,” she said. The program provides students with powerful technology currently used by professional software developers, giving them a head start in terms of skill and creating solutions that are relevant to marketplace.
Yasmin was speaking at the launch of Microsoft DreamSpark program and the Imagine Cup prize presentation held here today. Also present were Higher Education Deputy Minister Dato’ Saifuddin Abdullah, Director-General Department of Higher Education Malaysia Professor Dato’ Ir. Dr. Radin Umar Radin Sohadi and Vice Chancellor of Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka Professor Dr. Ahmad Yusoff Hassan.
Dato’ Saifuddin said that Malaysia’s greatest competitive asset is its human capital, and its development will transform the nation from a resource-based extraction economy into a country that is built on continuous innovation. “We have embarked on a close-working relationship with Microsoft to unearth the bright stars in technology innovation among tertiary students by providing the necessary tools and platforms for them to showcase their innovative skills,” he said.
He said that public-private sector partnerships like this with Microsoft and the institutes of higher learning (IHLs) have to exist across all industries to draw out the full potential of the country’s human capital. “Young people are the key to the nation’s renewal and I urge all students to take advantage of such opportunities and the exponential growth of technology to drive the growth of Malaysian IP in the global marketplace,” he added.
At today’s event, 26 teams from 13 universities showcased their winning solutions for the Imagine Cup Malaysia finals. Themed “Imagine a world where technology helps solve the toughest problems facing us today”, the students’ creations are aligned to curb the world’s most challenging social issues as outlined by the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, ranging from issues regarding extreme poverty and halting the spread of HIV/AIDS to providing universal primary education.
Yasmin said while DreamSpark enables students with professional tools to innovate, the Imagine Cup provides them with a platform to showcase those innovations. “Through these two initiatives, we are helping to unleash some of the greatest innovations and businesses of the future,” she said.
Now in its seventh year, the Imagine Cup aims to inspire students to innovate, to apply their creativity to discover new ways technology can be used and yet stay relevant, using those solutions to address some of the most critical issues challenging society at large today. In essence, it is about creating real-world solutions to solve real-world problems.
Globally known as the World Cup of software, Imagine Cup 2009 has attracted over 300,000 students from more than 100 countries to date, and in Malaysia the number of participants grew from 1,000 in 2008 to 2,600 this year.
“Over the years, our collaboration with the ministry, educational institutions and key industry stakeholders have allowed us to empower more than 180,000 students and teachers through K-12 and secondary school, as well more than 140,000 higher education students to encourage innovation through technology. We look forward to see the progress of our investments into the nation’s human capital development yield solutions that will impact the society and the economy,” Yasmin said.
Winners of the Malaysian Imagine Cup, Team Capricorn from Universiti Sains Malaysia, will qualify for the Worldwide Finals in Cairo, Egypt from July 3-7, 2009. Lim Kian Long, Chung Kok Hoe, Marilyn Lim and Steven Lim will be presenting their entry entitled “GreenEve2Peace” to a global audience in Egypt. “GreenEve2Peace” is a software solution that helps farmers consider multiple elements affecting crop production, with the end goal of increasing crop yields. Prizes for Imagine Cup 2009 will total more than RM630,000 across nine categories: Software Design, Embedded Development, Game Development, Robotics and Algorithm, IT Challenge, MashUp, Photography, Short Film and Design.
For more information on Imagine Cup and DreamSpark, please visit www.imaginecup.com and www.dreamspark.com.
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