MQA Receives Prestigious Asia-Pacific Governance Award
KUALA LUMPUR, July 10 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) has made history by becoming the first higher education quality assurance agency to receive the Governance Project of the Year - Higher Education (Asia-Pacific) award at the GovMedia Conference & Awards 2026.
MQA chief executive officer Prof Datuk Dr Mohammad Shatar Sabran said the prestigious recognition reflected the agency’s excellence in leading impactful initiatives to strengthen governance, foster innovation and enhance the country’s higher education quality assurance system through the MQA Awards 2025.
He said the achievement demonstrated that MQA’s strategic approach had not only strengthened organisational governance but also gained recognition from the international community.
“This achievement is not merely a success for MQA, it is also a recognition of Malaysia’s capability in developing a credible higher education quality assurance system that is benchmarked against global best practices.
“The award further enhances the reputation of both MQA and Malaysia on the global stage while supporting the internationalisation agenda for Malaysian higher education, as consistently championed by the Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir,” he said in a statement today.
The award presentation ceremony took place at the Marina Bay Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Singapore, yesterday.
Mohammad Shatar further said the award reflected MQA’s unwavering commitment to ensuring that Malaysia’s higher education quality assurance system remained relevant, credible and aligned with global best practices.
He said the recognition also highlighted the MQA Awards’ role beyond recognising excellence among higher education institutions, by serving as a catalyst for fostering innovation, strengthening governance and driving continuous improvement across Malaysia’s higher education ecosystem.
Mohammad Shatar added that the award would further motivate MQA to continue advancing excellence in the nation’s higher education quality assurance system.
“This recognition further strengthens MQA’s corporate brand as an internationally recognised leader in higher education quality assurance, while enhancing Malaysia’s reputation as a nation committed to governance excellence and quality higher education.
“MQA will continue to expand strategic partnerships with the public sector, private sector, industry, and higher education institutions at both regional and international levels to ensure that Malaysia’s quality assurance ecosystem remains competitive, responsive to change, and well-positioned to meet future needs,” he said.
The GovMedia Conference & Awards is a prestigious Asia-Pacific conference and recognition platform that gathers public sector leaders, policymakers and government agencies to share best practices and honour impactful projects that enhance service delivery, innovation and governance.
The ceremony saw 26 recipients from countries, including Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, receiving recognition across categories spanning education, community development, energy, agriculture, science and technology, regulatory excellence, finance, environmental sustainability, local government, communications, training, healthcare, youth development, urban development and social services.
Other Malaysian organisations that have been recognised at the GovMedia Conference & Awards include Istana Budaya, the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, the Accountant General’s Department of Malaysia, the Road Transport Department and HRD Corp.
The winners of the GovMedia Conference & Awards 2026 were selected by an international judging panel comprising Guillaume Sachet of KPMG and Shuchi Mehta of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
--BERNAMA