The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation or MATRADE is the external trade promotion arm of Malaysia’s Ministry of International Trade & Industry (MITI). A focal point for Malaysian exporters and foreign importers to source for trade related information, MATRADE provides market research information and relevant advice to assist Malaysian exporters to better position their products and services in highly competitive global markets.

Over the years, MATRADE has strengthened its focus on the services sector to ensure that the services component of the country’s exports continue to increase in line with the Government’s long-term development plans, such as the Ninth Malaysia Plan. In 1996, services, including Government services, contributed 48.9% to Malaysia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In 2005, this contribution grew to exceed 53%. Among the services that have been promoted by Malaysia include construction and professional services, tourism, ICT services, healthcare, education, franchising, printing and publishing services.

To enhance the country’s services sector, MATRADE has established regional initiatives within existing trading arrangements such as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) to develop mutually beneficial trade collaborations. APEC members include the USA, PR China, Japan, Malaysia, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Hong Kong SAR, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand and Vietnam. With over 2 billion people, the APEC market has tremendous growth potential.

‘The Forum on International Trade in Professional Services in APEC Economies’ was organised by MATRADE from 14 -17 August 2006 at the Putra World Trade Centre. Themed ‘Going Global with Professional Services – the APEC Experience’, the Forum provided networking opportunities to professional service providers and promoted business collaboration through better understanding of the latest practices by professional service providers. Services covered included ICT, health and related support management, engineering services and project management and consultancy.

The Forum identified that the Malaysian professional services sector had the capacity to provide competitively priced world-class products and services in areas such as healthcare, engineering and ICT. Dato’ Dr Jacob Thomas, the Group Medical Advisor of Subang Jaya Medical Centre Sdn Bhd and the Council Member of the Association of Private Hospitals of Malaysia said that one of the areas that should be given priority is medical tourism, pointing out that Malaysia’s medical facilities and skilled manpower will have a compelling competitive advantage when such services are marketed aggressively overseas.

Although there are strong competition even within the region, from countries such as Thailand and Singapore, the local private hospitals can strengthen their position in the marketplace by offering specialised medical tourism packages and extending their business linkages with partners in countries where there is a high demand for such services. In 2005 alone, it was estimated that 105,000 foreign patients sought medical treatment in Malaysia.

It was also noted that the local professional services sector will need to enhance its efforts to compete effectively in the global market. According to Professor Hock Lim Tan, who is the Inaugural Professor of Pediatric Surgery of the University of Adelaide, Australia, the service providers in Malaysia need to attract world class talent who already have strong global branding if they want a greater share of the global services market.

During the three-day event, a total of seven speakers which included four international speakers, delivered their respective presentations covering topics such as marketing of professional services in APEC Economies and brand building for professional services.

A majority of the participants acknowledged that the forum had facilitated networking between the local and foreign professional service providers. All participants were positive about the forum and indicated they would like to participate in similar events in the near future.

Having successfully organised this Professional Services Forum, MATRADE will be organising other promotional programmes to ensure that the Malaysian professional service providers will continue to receive the support and assistance needed to succeed in the global services market.

The Malaysian Government has established a fund worth RM150 million under the Ninth Malaysia Plan to assist Malaysian professional service providers to quickly evolve into regional and global players. The Fund, under the purview of the Ministry of International Trade & Industry, will be managed by MATRADE.

Source: Planning & Strategy Division, MATRADE