THE WORD
THE WORD WITH
DZULEIRA ABU BAKAR
C E O O F M A L AY S I A N G L O B A L I N N O VAT I O N & C R E AT I V I T Y C E N T R E ( M a G I C ) The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre (MaGIC), Dzuleira Abu Bakar has extensive experience in the start-up and tech ecosystem space both locally and abroad. Prior to MaGIC, Dzuleira was CEO of Cradle Seed Ventures (CSV) and has held key positions in both the public and private sector with a focus on venture capitalism and private equity. She is also an appointed Council Member of the National ICT Association of Malaysia (PIKOM). We chatted with her to find out more about herself, her role as CEO of MaGIC and the lay of the land for entrepreneurs in Malaysia. 1.
What does MaGIC do and what is your role as its CEO?
MaGIC is an extension under the Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives (MEDAC) and carries out the role of creating and catalysing the growth of innovation-driven entrepreneurship by bringing together all the various stakeholders from universities, schools, right up to the market itself. In essence, MaGIC acts as a connector and as the core of the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Malaysia.
As CEO of MaGIC, my role is to develop entrepreneurial talent for the country and to create a pipeline of talented entrepreneurs by establishing a healthy and thriving ecosystem.
2.
How is the entrepreneurial spirit in Malaysia like? What can be done to nurture and foster it to the next level? According to the Global Innovation Index in 2018, Malaysia ranked 35 with a score of 43.16, improving 2 notches compared to 2017. That said, there is still a lack of innovators, makers and creators in Malaysia. We have tremendous potential with the younger generation who are extremely technology savvy, creative and ambitious. Unfortunately, what is sorely lacking in the younger generation: an inquisitive mind to identify a problem and asking themselves how could it be solved and what can they do to solve it; and having the fundamental entrepreneurial behaviour and mindset such as financial literacy, cross-border collaboration, solving social causes or being part of one that can positively impact society and disrupt the industry. This is where education would need to go beyond academia through a thriving and healthy ecosystem.
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SHOUT 2019 BUMPER EDITION
“To be an entrepreneur, you will need to be creative and innovative, willing to take risks, not afraid to fail, and be tenacious among others.� - DZULEIRA ABU BAKAR -
