Kuala Lumpur, 12 October 2017 – The Wellness Cluster at the National Innovation & Creative Economy Expo 2017 (NICE 2017) is expected to transform Malaysia’s wellness industry through the growth of cutting-edge innovations. Championed by Malaysian Bioeconomy Development Corporation (Bioeconomy Corporation), the Wellness Cluster is a platform to create public awareness on the importance of a healthy lifestyle while offering growth opportunities for new businesses and facilitating wellness-related innovations across the nation. Chief Executive Officer of Bioeconomy Corporation, Dr. Mohd Shuhaizam Mohd Zain said that Malaysia needs to keep pace with the advances in wellness related-innovations in order for the sector to contribute over RM370 million in gross national income and 3,500 jobs by 2020, as targeted by the Malaysian Government.
“Currently, the wellness industry is marked by the integration of various technologies, thanks to the Industrial Revolution 4.0. For example, the usage of Internet of Things in biotechnology has allowed smartphone apps to measure a person’s sleep cycle or heart rate, while wireless biosensors in garments can monitor a user’s health. These technologies are allowing more people to easily track their personal health, which contributes to their overall wellness. We hope that the innovations featured in the Wellness Cluster will get more people to adopt a healthier lifestyle through wellness technologies while also catalysing the growth of more local, revamped wellness innovations to benefit and revolutionize the way Malaysians live,” he added.
As the leading agency of the Wellness Cluster at NICE 2017, Bioeconomy Corporation advocates the incorporation of wellness into people’s lifestyle by driving wellness-related innovations through various facilitation strategies. By championing Bioeconomy Corporation’s various initiatives at NICE 2017, the organisation is providing holistic solutions to the wellness industry through community outreach by Bioeconomy Community Development Programme (BCDP); public awareness, market access, and retail experience by BioShoppe; creation of talents and career opportunities by Bioeconomy Academy; commercialisation by BioNexus Partners (BNP) and growth opportunities in bio-based sectors via Bio-XCell Malaysia.
Exhibitors at the Wellness Cluster also feature other agencies under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI) including National Institute of Biotechnology Malaysia (NIBM), Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC) and Nuklear Malaysia, who offer workshops, demonstrations and product sales to increase awareness on their respective technology-based products and services that can enhance the rakyat’s well-being. Seven Memorandum of Understandings (MOUs) and exchanges involving NIBM, Nuklear Malaysia and other parties were also officiated by the Secretary General of MOSTI, Datuk Seri Dr. Mohd Azhar bin Hj Yahya.
Other companies exhibiting include Biocon (official sponsor of the Wellness Cluster), Rural Asset, Malacca Butterfly & Reptile Sanctuary, Bio Well, Mellow Oiler (Young Living) & Metta Studios, GeoOrigin and Association of International Certified Aesthetician (AICA). Visitors at the Wellness Cluster also get to experience how wellness can bring positive impact to their daily lives in a complete way through activities that cover areas of physical, spiritual, social and intellectual wellness. These activities include the Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) Therapy demonstration, natural cosmetics workshop, yoga and Zumba workouts, healthy cooking demonstrations, manicure and pedicure sessions, product launches, insightful talks on wellness and more.
Held from 12 to 16 October, the NICE Expo 2017 is an initiative by MOSTI to further promote the scientific and technological-based economic activities to the general public. The nation’s largest science, technology and innovation-based expo is held at Technology Park Malaysia, National Science Center and Country Planetarium. It involves 15 ministries and government departments, 25 agencies under MOSTI as well as 39 strategic partners. NICE 2017 focuses on sustainable living highlighting innovations in the five key clusters of ICT, Edutainment, Wellness, Technology and Knowledge. More information on NICE 2017 programs can be found at http://niceexpo.mosti.gov.my/nice2017. For more details on the Wellness Cluster, please visit Bieoconomy Corporation’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BioeconomyCorporation
