KUALA LUMPUR (June 22): Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP) will host the sixth World Engineering, Science and Technology Congress (ESTCON2020) from July 13 to 15 this year.

The university noted in statement that it is hosting the three-day congress with support from the Ministry of Higher Education and Academy of Sciences Malaysia, and in collaboration with Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas), Yayasan UTP and the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF).  It added that the congress will be officiated by Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Noraini Ahmad.  

UTP stated that more than 1,000 experts in diverse fields of research, innovation and commercialisation from 30 countries will gather to take part in this event. 

UTP said with the theme “Science, Technology & Humanities: Reinventing the Future”, this is the first time the university organises the biennial congress virtually since it was held in 2010. 

“The congress provides a platform for industry, academia, government and the public to take part in global discussions that cover a wide range of topics from simulation, big data and analytics, augmented reality, autonomous robots and the industrial Internet of things to non-technical topics of leadership and values, economy, communications and communities,” it added. 

UTP noted that it is the largest congress in the world with nine simultaneously held international conferences. 

UTP Vice Chancellor and chairman of ESTCON2020 Professor Ts Dr Mohamed Ibrahim Abdul Mutalib said: “Each of these conferences will focus on different issues pertaining to their respective themes. The nine conferences are in tandem with UTP’s objectives and goals, and allow the university to open up new frontiers, pioneer research, create new technology, and introduce innovative solutions and methods for sustainable developments that will bring mutual benefits to the society.”

One of the speakers who will deliver keynote addresses is Senapathy Gopalakrishnan, the chairman of Axilor Ventures, India, and he will talk about sustainable technology. 

Other speakers are Professor Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Zakri Abdul Hamid, a senior fellow of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia who will deliver his keynote on Society 5.0, while Professor Datuk Dr A Bakar Jaafar, the chairman of the Malaysian Green Technology and Climate Change Centre, will share his views on future engineering. 

Dr William Selvamurthy, the president of the Amity Science, Technology and Innovation Foundation, India and Professor John Holbrey, the chair of green chemistry in the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, Northern Ireland are also keynote speakers.