PUTRAJAYA, 25 Jan. 2019 – Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) and Malaysian Meteorological Department have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will see the two establishments collaborate to work on a system that can distribute information regarding tsunamis and other disasters more effectively.

UMT Vice Chancellor Professor Dato’ Dr Nor Aieni Mokhtar said that the objective of the collaboration was to develop a comprehensive system that could provide up-to-date information regarding the conditions of the oceans.

“UMT has worked closely with Malaysian Meteorological Department since 2017 in the development of the Ocean Forecasting System (OFS) project, involving the sharing of data on the atmosphere and oceanography of the South China Sea waters,” the Vice Chancellor said.

“And now both establishments will be working together in synergy to develop an information distribution system that will provide details on temperature, current, and wave forecast. It is hoped that after the successful implement of this system, the data gathered can be channelled to and used by other related agencies in the fishery, oil and gas, and tourism industries,” the Vice Chancellor said.

The Vice Chancellor also said that the project would also be beneficial to the communities along the coast of the South China Sea in that it would provide them with important information regarding nearby disasters so they could take necessary measures.

“Information obtained from this project will be useful in assisting related agencies to establish appropriate guidelines and policies in the future,” Professor Nor Aieni said.

At the signing ceremony, the Director General of Malaysian Meteorological Department Alui Bahari signed the MoU on behalf of the Malaysian government and the Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change. Also present at the signing ceremony were Ambun Dindang, Director of Research and Technical Development Divison, Malaysian Meteorological Department, and Associate Professor Dr Aidy@Mohamed Shawal M. Muslim, Director of the Institute of Oceanography and Environment (INOS), UMT.

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Corporate Communication Centre

Universiti Malaysia Terengganu