Vienna/Kuala Lumpur, 09. May 2011
Malaysia Europe Forum – Vienna Spring Dialogue
For the third year running – the The Malaysia-Europe Forum (MEF) once again ventured to
Europe to host its annual dialogue. In partnership with the Austrian Federal Economic
Chamber and with GBP International as associated partner. The MEF-Vienna Spring
Dialogue 2011 was hosted on the 9th of May, 2011 in Vienna, Austria.
Themed ‘Malaysia: Your Green Economy Hub in ASEAN’, the dialogue not only attracted
European companies that are active in the green space, but also companies from a variety of
industries, across the board. Participants came from across Austria, Germany, Belgium,
Slovakia and the UK. In keeping with the MEF’s approach to all-inclusiveness, the dialogue was
attended by those from a variety of backgrounds, and included business leaders, professionals,
academics, civil servants, trade commissioners as well as students.
For the second year running, the MEF shone the spotlight and focussed on green technology while
having the honour to once again host Malaysia’s Minister of Energy, Green Technology and Water,
The Honourable Dato’ Sri Peter Chin, who delivered the keynote address. In his speech, the Minister
emphasised that Malaysia was very much open to collaborative opportunities between Malaysia and
Europe and stressed that dialogues such as those organised by MEF not only opened doors for joint
and mutual benefit, but also created and opened up further avenues for growth and trade between
Malaysia and Europe. The Minister also touched on Malaysia’s major policy initiatives such as the
New Economic Model, the Economic Transformation Programme, the under-negotiation Malaysia-EU
Free Trade Agreement (FTA), as well as the Renewable Energy Act which had been recently passed
by the Malaysian Parliament. Apart from engaging in an active dialogue with all participants during
the Q&A session, the Minister also participated in a roundtable with a number of Austrian companies
following his keynote address. All participants at the dialogue were given the opportunity to actively
engage and network with one another during the coffee break and lunch session. Following this, B2B
meetings were also carried out betw