General

To commemorate the International Day of Sign Languages on 23 September, we look at how to promote more widespread use of sign languages in all areas of life, starting with teaching sign languages to all children at school level, for both the deaf and the hearing. We also discuss what the pandemic has taught us about the risks of leaving the deaf community out from communication and public health strategies, and how we should be more inclusive towards the hearing-impaired. We speak to Dr Rajini Sarvananthan, Consultant Developmental Paediatrician, as well as to Mohamad Sazali Shaari, Executive Director, and Wan Zuraidah Abu, Head of Sign Language Interpreting Services, from the Malaysia Federation of the Deaf.

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On the 13th of September the Ismail Sabri administration and the Pakatan Harapan bloc of the opposition bench signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Transformation and Political Stability. Basically the deal will see Pakatan Harapan either support or refrain from voting when it comes to critical votes such as the budget in exchange for certain institutional reforms and policies that could potentially benefit the rakyat. 

It’s been 10 days since the deal was inked, so what has the fallout been like so far? YB Nik Nazmi joins us to discuss.

Image credit: Nik Nazmi Instagram account

With schools set to reopen soon, how can we do it safely? On today's episode in our series on school reopenings, Dr Khor Swee Kheng, an independent health policies specialist, and Professor Dr Sanjay Rampal, and epidemiologist and public health specialist, join us to tackle those difficult questions of how we can reopen schools safely amidst rising infection and higher deaths amongst children, and to openly discuss the sorts of trade-offs we face as a society, in deciding on school reopenings. This series is done in collaboration with Buka Sekolah Kami! a coalition of teachers, parents, educational institutions, medical professionals and grassroots organizations, who believe that the cost of school closures greatly outweigh the benefits. They are advocating for policy makers to prioritize the reopening of schools on a national level, and the need for a decentralised solution, and an end to blanket policies.

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Effective immediately, gyms in Phase Two of National Recovery Plan (NRP) are allowed to operate with 50% capacity, Minister for Youth and Sports Ahmad Faizal Azumu said on 17 September 2021 (Friday). He urged the public to follow the standard operating procedures (SOPs) in place, especially the ventilation guidelines.

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Facebook and Bain & Company launched a report that provides more insights into Southeast Asia’s digital boom and the future of e-commerce in the region. We catch up with Nicole and Gwendolyn to analyse some of the key highlights, and see what the future might have for the digital consumer in SE Asia.

Malaysian giant freshwater prawns are known worldwide for their size and taste, and are revered at chef’s tables. Despite this, much of the freshwater prawns consumed here in Malaysia are imported, rather than bred here. The industry here in Malaysia was almost lost - and Giva Kuppusamy and his company are hoping to revive it.

Key highlights from our Ringgit and Sense webinar touching on the importance of investing, how it fits in with your financial planning, the types of asset classes to choose from, and some tips on how to pick stocks.

For the full conversation, check out the FB Live session here:

https://www.facebook.com/BFMradio/videos/536760667585566

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One thing this Covid-19 pandemic and its subsequent lockdowns have taught us is how important it is to be online to keep your business - and income - steadily flowing.

We keep hearing about digitally transforming businesses to ensure this happens.

Find out how you, as a business owner, can weather these changes, when Jordy Cao, the General Manager of Malaysia for Alibaba Cloud Intelligence, the leading cloud service provider in the Asia-Pacific, speaks to Keith Kam.

Unlike the Malaysian equity market, the debt market remains in vogue with foreign investors. In fact, foreign investors hold around 40% or RM192 billion of total Malaysian Government Securities (MGS) outstanding.

So what are the reasons for the foreign inflow and is there the risk of a reversal when the Federal Reserve starts undoing their accomodative monetary policy? We discuss this with Hasif Murad of Aberdeen Standard Investments.

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Launched in 2013, the Malaysia Education Blueprint (MEB) ends in 2025. With four more years remaining, what problems continue to besiege our education system? Idris Jala, CEO of PEMANDU Associates discusses.

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