30th August 2023: The Department of Biosciences at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and Professor Fahrul Huyop successfully organized the 5th International Conference on Biosciences and Medical Engineering (ICBME 2023) in collaboration with the Faculty of Agricultural Technology at Udayana University. The conference took place mid-year, on the 30th and 31st of August 2023, at the Four Points Hotel, Bali. It was attended by over 195 participants from reputable higher learning institutions across Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Nigeria, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Algeria, and Japan.
The two-day scientific program focused on the theme Advances in Nanotechnology for Biosciences and Medical Engineering and was addressed by distinguished speakers, including keynote speaker Dr. Gyorgy Szekely from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia. The conference also featured plenary lectures delivered by reputable professors, such as Fatchiyah F. from Brawijaya University, Shahrul Hisham Zainal Ariffin from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Nikos Hadjichristidis from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia, and I Gusti Ngurah Kade Mahardika from Udayana University.
To prepare for the conference, a workshop on Nanomaterials Characterization and Performance Analysis was tentatively conducted by Assoc. Prof. Ts. ChM. Dr. Nik Ahmad Nizam Nik Malik and his team from the Centre for Sustainable Nanomaterials (CSNano) Research Center at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Dr. IB Wayan Gunam of Udayana University, who served as the conference chair, genuinely emphasized the significance of nanotechnology research in multidisciplinary fields.
The conference was generously sponsored by NS Field Sdn. Bhd., and Ms. Carmen Wong, the Director of NS Field, expressed her trust in research universities like Universiti Teknologi Malaysia to conduct valuable research to enhance product quality. She preferred the importance of supporting the agricultural sector through the application of science and technology throughout Southeast Asia.
Figure 1: The Opening Ceremony of ICBME2023 was officiated by Prof. Ir. I Made Anom Sutrisna Wijaya, the Dean of the Faculty of Agricultural Technology (fourth from the left).
Over two days, the Biosciences and Biomedical Science conference featured 70 presentations spanning various fields. The event recognised outstanding researchers, young scientists, distinguished researchers, and professors through awards for the best poster and oral presenters. Moreover, the conference achieved significant milestones with the signing of the Letter of Award (LoA) and Letter of Cooperation (LoC) for Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) and Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between NS Field Sdn. Bhd. and UTM, as well as Udayana University and UTM, respectively. This successful gathering marks another significant achievement for Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s unwavering commitment to high-quality research and scientific collaboration.
Figure 2: The signing of the Letter of Cooperation (LoC) between the representative of the Faculty of Science, Professor Fahrul Huyop, and the Dean of the Faculty of Agricultural Technology, Udayana University.
Figure 3: The signing of the Letter of Award (LoA) between the representative of NS Field Sdn. Bhd., Ms. Carmen Wong, and the Faculty of Science (UTM) representative, Prof. Fahrul Huyop.
Link website: https://csnano.utm.my/icbme-iciat-2023/
Prepared by: Dr. Firdaus Abdul Wahab