Malaysian government should pay attention to grassroots innovation, says Indian scholar
PUTRAJAYA, Sept 29 (Bernama) -- Grassroots innovation, if well capitalized, will enable Malaysia to achieve high-income economic status even before 2020, says an Indian scholar.
The Vice-Chairman, National Innovation Foundation of India, Professor Anil K. Gupta said Malaysia can achieve the status through the enhancement of grassroots innovation as high-income can only be achieved by reducing cost and simultaneously increasing productivity.
He said grassroots innovation was made up of cheap, easy-to-find and sustainable raw materials and if the government gives due consideration to the innovators by commercializing their ideas, the nation stands a great chance of achieving the high-income economic status much earlier than targeted.
"The government through its agencies must go for grassroots innovators as they usually do not emerge in the mainstream for fear of being sidelined.
"If Malaysia can capitalize on these talents, from what I have seen in Kedah, Perlis and Perak, it will result in even those without proper education become an inventor.
"Their ideas stand a bright chance of being commercialized later," he told Bernama, adding that grassroots innovations are ideas generated by people who do not have the formal requirement to invent an idea or product.
Grassroots innovators can be found anywhere in the world, with their ideas designed in their own way of culture, heritage and business-purpose.
Anil said the Malaysian government must now render greater support for the Malaysian Innovation Foundation to discover and tap small ideas and mechanisms of non-urbanites and which major corporations would not venture into.
He also advised the foundation to emulate the National Innovation Foundation of India that introduced and nurtured innovation right from the tender age in schools.
"Schools are not only the first place to acquire knowledge but also the place where future leaders and innovators emerge.
"So, why don't we transform future innovators to become present innovators, and at the same time, save time in achieving a vision much earlier than having to wait 10 to 20 years," Anil quipped.
He also said the Indian innovation foundation began with no government funding some 20 years ago.
"But today, we have discovered some 160,000 grassroots ideas and innovation from 545 districts.
"Many grassroots ideas have been commercialized and contributed a significant percentage to our Gross Domestic Product, annually," Anil added.
| « 20 to 35 percent penalty for late submission of income tax returns | | | Healthcare projects to generate RM17.12b in revenue, 86,000 jobs by 2020 » |
