Despite growing concern over environmental issues and the sustainability of economic growth, industrialization is still generally associated with progress and development. This is particularly true of developing countries where industrialization is often the nation's top priority. Industrializing Malaysia presents a critical analysis of the experience of industrialization in Malaysia, examining the role, impact and efficacy of post-independence industrialization policies. The author refocuses attention on some major intended as well as unintended implications and consequences of policies and performance. A wide range of issues is covered: in addition to general historical commentaries and sectoral studies, there are analyses of direct foreign investment, technology, linkages, free trade zones, industrial estates, and rural development.

Rice is life, for most people living in Asia. Rice has shaped the cultures, diets, and economies of thousands of millions of people. Growing, selling, and eating rice are integral to the culture of many countries. Products of the rice plant are used for a number of different purposes, such as fuel, thatching, industrial starch, and artwork. Rice is the staple food of more than half of the world's population - more than 3.5 billion people depend on rice for more than 20% of their daily calories. Asia accounts for 90% of global rice consumption, exceeding 100 kg per capita annually in many countries. Keeping in view the importance of rice, the United Nations declared 2004 as the International Year of Rice. Food security, which is the condition of having enough food to provide adequate nutrition for a healthy life, is a critical issue. Sustainable rice production is important for food self-sufficiency and food security in changing climates. Sustainable rice production practices are those which (1) increase rice productivity and its quality, (2) improve soil fertility and health, (3) increase water use efficiency and conservation, and (4) increase diversification of rice fields, growers' income, and climate resilience.

Trends and patterns in Asian rice consumption; Assessing rice quality characteristics and prices in selected international markets; Consumer demand for rice grain quality; Parboiling and consumer demand for parboiled rice in South Asia; Rice grain quality as an emerging priority in national rice breeding programs; Research priorities for improving rice grain quality.

This book examines how business, the social sciences, science and technology will impact the future of ASEAN. Following the ASEAN VISION 2020, it analyses the issues faced by ASEAN countries, which are diverse, while also positioning ASEAN as a competitive entity through partnerships. On the 30th anniversary of ASEAN, all ASEAN leaders agreed to the establishment of the ASEAN VISION 2020, which delineates the formation of a peaceful, stable and dynamically developed region while maintaining a community of caring societies in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. In keeping with this aspiration, Universiti Teknologi MARA Perlis took the initial steps to organise conferences and activities that highlight the role of the ASEAN region. The Second International Conference on the Future of ASEAN (ICoFA) 2017 was organised by the Office of Academic Affairs, Universiti Teknologi MARA Perlis, to promote more comprehensive integration among ASEAN members. This book, divided into two volumes, offers a useful guide for all those engaged in research on business, the social sciences, science and technology. It will also benefit researchers worldwide who want to gain more knowledge about ASEAN countries

This book, bringing together selected papers from the 10th International Conference on Entrepreneurship, Business and Technology (InCEBT) on the overarching theme of ‘Industry Forward and Technology Transformation in Business and Entrepreneurship’, provides the audience some preliminary understanding of the current and emerging trends in entrepreneurship and business activities. This includes the usage of information and digital technology in business, competition in a digital economy, its challenges and opportunities, and transformation of business and entrepreneurship for the forward industry.

Malaysia's transition from a country dependent on agriculture and mining to an industrialized society is readily apparent, but the process of change remains poorly understood. When R.D. Hill began studying agriculture in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei in the 1960s, he found swiddening, market-gardening, semi-commercial wet-rice cultivation and large scale plantations. Today, Malaysian agriculture has become highly capital-intensive and increasingly specialized, and many forms of production have all but disappeared. Once dependent on the export of primary products such as tin, rubber and palm oil, Malaysia is now an industrialized, middle income country. Singapore has nearly abandoned its primary sector. This completely revised edition of Hill's 1982 study, with two lengthy new chapters, explains the evolution of agriculture in Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore over the last forty years, with particular attention to the agro-ecosystems of the major crops.