The MSC International Advisory Panel (IAP) is a group of leading industry figures, academicians, top members of international think tanks, CEOs and international experts who provide counsel to the Malaysian Government in shaping the development and growth of Malaysia’s Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC Malaysia) and the ICT industry at large. IAP members’ inputs and expertise have so far contributed significantly and have been used as part of the strategy for the development of the MSC Malaysia.

The Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC), as the body responsible for overseeing the development of the MSC Malaysia, has organised twelve  IAP meetings since 1997, with the inaugural meeting held on January 16 at Stanford University, USA.

Like the MSC Malaysia, the initial IAP meeting was truly a world-first. It was the first time that such a distinguished group of international business leaders had assembled in one room to provide counsel to a national government on creating the ideal technology environment. A group of 20 Malaysian government and business representatives attended the meeting as observers.

From 1998 onwards, the IAP meetings were held in Malaysia. The second until the seventh IAP Meetings were held in Cyberjaya, the nucleus of MSC Malaysia. In 2004, the 8th IAP meeting was held at Putrajaya, the Malaysian Federal Administrative Centre located within MSC Malaysia.

In 2005, the 9th IAP meeting was held in Penang as part of the MSC Malaysia rollout. This drew significant participation from the IAP members who advocated the expansion of the MSC Malaysia as a strategy to narrow the digital divide as well as to harness the talents and expertise beyond the MSC Malaysia central zone.

While the 10th and 12th IAP Meetings were again held at Putrajaya International Convention Centre in Putrajaya in May 2007 and November 2009 respectively, the 11th IAP Meeting was held in the nation’s capital of Kuala Lumpur in conjunction with the World Congress Information Technology (WCIT) 2008 Conference. The meeting was held from 15 to 18 May 2008 followed by the WCIT 2008 Conference from 18 to 22 May 2008 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.

This year, the 13th MSC Malaysia IAP Meeting will be held at the Prime Minister’s Office in Putrajaya on 7 October 2010. With ICT and the Digital Economy as the discussion backdrop, the Prime Minister of Malaysia is optimistic that the counsel of the IAP Panel members can further shape and enrich MSC Malaysia.