Malaysia: Malaysia has received special recognition and an award for its leadership and significant contributions in advancing progress, development, and statistical cooperation among member countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) announced that chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin was honoured for his outstanding leadership and invaluable role in promoting statistical cooperation within the OIC. He received the recognition during the OIC Statistical Commission (OIC-StatCom) session held in Ankara, Turkiye, from Oct 1 to 3.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, DOSM highlighted Malaysia's strong track record, noting that Mohd Uzir chaired the 7th and 8th sessions of OIC-StatCom in 2018-2019 and was appointed Vice-Chair at the 12th session in 2023. DOSM said the recognition reflects the international community's confidence in Malaysia's statistical leadership. DOSM also announced Malaysia's achievement in securing the top global position in the Open Data Inventory (ODIN) 2024/25 by Open Data Watch (ODW), further strengthening Malaysia's role as a benchmark for OIC member countries.
The department added that Malaysia and the Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) renewed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) first signed in 2020 in New York during the 51st session of the United Nations (UN) Statistical Commission. The renewal reaffirms the strong partnership in capacity-building through the StatCaB Programme, where Malaysia both contributes significantly and benefits from regional exchanges.
Meanwhile, Mohd Uzir said the gathering demonstrated the strength of the shared vision of OIC member countries and underscored the importance of cooperation, unity, and capacity development to meet global demands for reliable, timely, and comparable data. He said the renewal of the MoU reflects a continued commitment to strengthening collaboration and ensuring that no member country is left behind in the era of rapid transformation.