KUALA LUMPUR: Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek has called for Bahasa Melayu to be promoted as a key player in all sectors, to enhance its economic and commercial value.
She said that in order to elevate the status and function of the national language in public service, every civil servant must consistently use a high-standard form of Malay when preparing official documents, whether at the federal, state, or local government levels.
"Industry players, especially from the private sector, such as broadcast media, advertising and finance, also play an important role in expanding the use of proper Bahasa Melayu for effective delivery of information," she said in her speech.
The text of her speech was read out by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) board of directors chairman Datuk Dr Anwar Ridhwan at the 2024 National Language Planning Seminar, at Menara DBP, here, today.
Fadhlina also highlighted the importance of strengthening regional and international cooperation to enhance relations, understanding and literary collaboration between countries, as well as to coordinate activities and research in language, literature and regional culture.
Close cooperation, said Fadhlina, must continue to create opportunities for writers to develop their talent, and to support translation, publication, and recognition of literary achievements.
This effort, she said, would also help expand the reach and usage of Malay at both regional and international levels.
She also congratulated DBP on the success of its Malay manuscript collection, "Al-Tarikh Salasilah Negeri Kedah", which earned the Unesco Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific (MoWCAP) 2024 recognition award.
"Congratulations to DBP for also receiving the Prestigious Bronze Award in the final stage of the i-Mind Competition, held in conjunction with the International Conference on Dynamic Innovative Minds 2024.
"This award proves DBP's capability in the digitalisation of textbooks and publishing digital Bahasa Melayu learning materials, which can transcend physical geographical boundaries," she said.
Meanwhile, DBP director-general Dr Hazami Jahari said that today's seminar was not only a platform for sharing knowledge, but also a forum for uniting ideas and concluding the direction in strengthening national language planning.
"Over two days, a total of 16 working papers will be presented, including a keynote paper, a policy paper, three special papers and 11 working papers covering three main scopes, namely Bahasa Melayu as the National Language, Bahasa Melayu as the Language of Knowledge and Bahasa Melayu as the Economic Language," he said.
The 2024 National Language Planning Seminar aims to bring together scholars, researchers and professionals from various disciplines to discuss current developments and identify new aspects in the use of language.
The two-day programme, starting today, was officiated by Anwar. Also present were DBP deputy director-general (Policy), Md Johari Hasan; DBP director (Policy and Research Department), Fauzilahyatun Mustafa; and Institute of Teacher Education rector, Dr Mohd Azam Ahmad.
– BERNAMA