Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) is planning to establish its first hospital, envisioned not only as a teaching facility but also as a healthcare centre of excellence and a catalyst for Bumiputera economic development.
Mara chairman Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said a special team had already begun work on the proposed hospital, with five key reasons identified for developing the institution.
He said Mara already had a broad education ecosystem, including UniKL Royal College of Medicine Perak (UniKL RCMP), which offers medical and healthcare programmes such as nursing, pharmacy and physiotherapy.
“Clinical training and experience at a teaching hospital are necessary to complete the UniKL RCMP ecosystem,” he said in a Facebook post today.
Asyraf Wajdi said Mara already possessed most of the components required for an integrated healthcare and medical education ecosystem through UniKL RCMP, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), as well as technology programmes at Mara High Skills Colleges (KKTM), now known as TVETMARA, including campuses in Lenggong and Ledang.
He added that Mara’s entrepreneurial network, financing facilities and industry development capabilities could also be integrated into the proposed hospital.
“Mara’s strength is that we do not only have medical institutions. We also have TVET, engineering, technology, entrepreneurship, financing and industry networks. A hospital can be a place where all these components come together,” he said.
He said biomedical science programmes at UniKL MESTECH and various technology disciplines offered at other UniKL campuses could also be incorporated into the hospital ecosystem.
According to Asyraf Wajdi, one of the hospital’s key advantages would be its potential to serve as a “living laboratory” for Mara students and researchers.
KKTM students, for example, could contribute to the development of hospital equipment and systems, while UniKL RCMP students could undergo clinical training. Students from other UniKL campuses could work on artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), robotics and medical device technologies.
At the same time, Mara entrepreneurs could supply products and services to support the hospital ecosystem.
Asyraf Wajdi also highlighted Mara’s network of 160 U.n.i KLINIK, U.n.i Farmasi and U.n.i Dental outlets as another important component, describing the facilities as an existing frontline healthcare network operated by Bumiputera professional entrepreneurs under the ProSPEC programme.
He said the proposed hospital would represent a natural extension of Mara’s mandate to develop Bumiputera human capital, entrepreneurship and strategic ownership.
“After decades of producing doctors, nurses, pharmacists and healthcare professionals, the time has come for Mara not only to produce professionals for the healthcare industry, but also to build and own an institution where they can serve, conduct research and eventually lead the industry,” he said.
