UTM Johor Bahru – Twenty two (22) officials from the National Housing Authority (NHA) and Nakon Rachasima Office, Thailand, led by two senior academics from the Mahasarakham University (MSU), visited the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Faculty of Built Environment (FAB), UTM Johor Bahru and Iskandar Malaysia on 24 November 2015.
The visit was part of MSU’s joint research with the two Thai authorities in search of international best practice models for housing development. UTM and Iskandar Malaysia were chosen as two of the several international reference points.
On hand to receive the Thai delegates at the Faculty were Assoc. Prof. Datin Dr. Norsiah Abdul Aziz, Head of Department (Urban and Regional Planning) and Mr. Chau Loon Wai, Lecturer from Urban and Regional Planning Department and Core Researcher of the UTM-Low Carbon Asia Research Centre based in the Faculty.
Mr. Chau briefed the Thai delegates on Iskandar Malaysia’s development and the current state and issues of housing development in the rapidly growing economic corridor. The delegates were then led on a technical visit to key development projects in Johor Bahru and Nusajaya.
The activity is a recognition of the quality of teaching and research in UTM’s Department of Urban and Regional Planning and bears testimony to the department’s continuous efforts in internationalising and contributing to the regional and international communities.
MSU has an active MoU with UTM since January 2011, to which the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Faculty of Built Environment has been most actively contributing with annual joint workshops and occasional technical visits.