Guinness World Record for the “most contributions to a painting by numbers” - Global Transformation Forum 2015

image credit: the staronline

Amongst the inspirational talks being shared during #gtf20125, a world record in painting was quietly being carried out spearheaded by BFR Institute Sdn Bhd. Inspired by the six secrets of Transformational Leadership theme of the forum, the painting was verified by Guinness World Records adjudicator Rob Molloy.

2,339 delegates and visitors of #gtf 2015 were requested to paint the Tree of Life, drawn by Malaysian artists Alena Murang and Leon Jala on nine square-metres of canvas. in a Utilizing the paint-by-number method, participants painted the canvas using designated colors that corresponded with the respective numbers creating a Guinness World Record for the “most contributions to a painting by numbers”.

Among those who contributed to the painting are former Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd, former Prime Minister of New Zealand and United Nations Development Programme administrator Helen Clark, former President of Bolivia Jorge Quiroga and co-founder of Starbucks Zev Siegl.

Alex Iskandar Liew, PEMANDU’s communications director said the record attempt was scheduled to be completed within 14 hours, the exact number of hours the hall was opened to the public during the two-day forum. The Guinness World Record epitomizes the desire of the entire team to outdo ourselves.

PEMANDU CEO and BFR-I managing director Datuk Seri Idris Jala said the attempt was set as an “impossible target”, adding that the transformation journey starts by setting Olympic or impossible targets, because stretched targets will force creativity, and out-of-the-box solutions to achieve targets.

Global Transformation Forum 2015

Prime Minister Dato Seri Najib Tun Razak

There is a need to reignite the engines of growth said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in his opening remarks at the Global Transformation Forum (GTF 2015).

He said there were tough decisions to be made, policies up for review and a clearer socio-economic roadmap to be developed if Malaysia wanted to break away from the middle income trap fast and become a high income nation by the year 2020.

Our good years of growth are reaching a plateau. Investments are thinning, there is increased competition for global investors and our economy is in danger of getting caught in the middle income trap.

The global economy is currently facing fierce headwinds, with the decline in oil and commodity prices, the rise in United States’ interest rates and devaluation of the Chinese Yuan.

This situation could last a few years, so the government must rethink its objectives and ambitions to maintain its long-term vision for the country. We are doing so and I will outline some of the measures we intend to take in our annual Budget this Friday, he said.

We should not lose sight of what we have achieved in our transformation over the last six years. It has been nothing short of phenomenal. Malaysia has seen sustainable economic growth and more than double the investments compared to four years ago.

The fiscal deficit fell to 3.4% last year from 6.7% in 2009 when the Government first began its national transformation agenda. With this number reducing each year since 2010, as per our targets, we are confident of reaching a balanced budget - or as close to that as possible - by 2020.

On the 1Malaysia Development Bhd the PM promised to take the strictest action against anyone found to be involved should there be any evidence of wrongdoing.

1MDB is in the midst of implementing a rationalization plan, which would allow the company to pay off its outstanding debt and resolve its current cash flow issues.

On claims of wrongdoing, there are a number of independent investigations, some of which I myself ordered. Rather than conduct a trial by media, we must wait for the outcome of these investigations, he said.

Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department and head of the Government’s Economic Planning Unit Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid said the bottom 40 (B40) group earnings had increased by 12.7% from 2009 to last year under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

The income level of the B40 group has moved up at a faster rate compared with that of the top 20% wealthiest group over the past five years.

Between 2009 and last year, we saw tremendous growth of income of the bottom 40% household increasing quicker than the top 20%,” he said during the ‘Designing the Future’ session.

Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop

Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop, who served as Finance Minister II from 2004 to 2009, said Malaysia was the only country in the world to have a dual banking system comprising conventional and Islamic banking.

In terms of our optimal combination of public and private sector, what has worked is that we’ve built world class infrastructure. We’ve done that very well he stressed in a session titled

‘Transforming State-Owned Enterprises’.

The current state investment fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad deputy chairman went on to say that Malaysia has created world class infrastructure and a strong financial system with the government and private sectors working well together.

We’ve created a very developed, very robust financial system, both in conventional banking as well as Islamic banking. The areas that need further improvement are skills training, which he noted has not been able to fulfill industry demands, as well as better coordination between government agencies.

He warned that if we do not have a stronger performance, we risk becoming like Nokia. We need better risk management, or we risk a major accident like BP, or poor governance like Volkswagen.

Tan Sri Tony Fernandes

AirAsia Group chief executive Tan Sri Tony Fernandes called for more transparency in taxation when he said governments need to be more open on their tax collecting procedures, adding that corporations show greater accountability than governments in their spending.

He said the current taxation system was very complicated, with many different demographics and special needs being taken into account that left the system open to abuse.

In a session titled ‘Transformational Entrepreneurship’ Fernandes said companies were better than governments in being more accountable on tax revenues, spending, ensuring a better P&L, detailing how much money was spent and whether there was a good ROI.

The implementation of GST has sparked complaints of the broad-based consumption tax system being too complex due to a long list of exemptions and zero-rated goods.

He also said that branding was not merely about external branding but internal branding as well, adding that “If you’re going to sell a brand; if your own people don’t believe in the brand, it’s kind of tough. Many great companies miss out on their greatest asset — which is the people in their own organization”.

“I think governments also miss out their biggest asset — the people. The strongest asset in Malaysia is our amazing diversity and the very talented people in this country. Given the chance, we can do so much,” he said.

Highlights from the Animals for Asia Borneo 2015 International Conference

The Main Event

This year’s conference, the first of its kind to be held in Malaysia and hosted by the SSPCA broke from norm by offering an unprecedented 6 themes:

1.   Animals in the Wild (Aquatic and Terrestrial)

2.   Managing Strays, Pets and Farmed Animals

3.   Animal Care (Veterinary care)

4.   Animal Care (Rescue and Rehabilitation)

5.   Animals in Captivity

6.   Animals in Trade

With two special sessions:

1.   The future of Borneo’s Animals

2.   Managing an NGO

Borneo Futures was one of the special sessions held on Oct 8 only for registered delegates. The sessions include talks, musical performances, body art painting and a comedy sketch by Jo Kukaltas’ alter ego Puan Badariah.

With the packed schedule spread over five days, some 600 participants and 60 speakers from across the globe attended, with all of them agreeing that ‘Partnerships Breed Success’ was indeed an apt description for #afaborneo2015.

Participants paid US$350 (RM800 for Malaysian residents) for the five-day package, while a single-day package was offered at US$100 (RM200 for Malaysian residents). A special student price of US$100 (RM350) for a four-day package was also offered.

Besides the featured speakers, other highlights during the keynote sessions were Minister of Local Government and Community Development Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh’s announcement that the SSPCA had been allotted a piece of land for their new animal village after four years of lobbying for it.  

Tourism Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg declared his support for the SSPCA for hosting the ‘Asia for Animals 2015 Conference’ by allocating funds for it.

Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem conveyed via Tourism Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari that the SSPCA goes to great lengths to promote better animal welfare management, and is also the only animal NGO in Malaysia to work with the local council.

He therefore urged corporate bodies like Shell to include animal welfare in their annual corporate social responsibility budgets. Are you reading this, Shell peeps?

Kudos to SSPCA President Dona Drury Wee, Organising chairperson Rebecca D’Cruz, SSPCA Hon Sec and Executive Director/Principal Consultant of Planet Borneo Group of companies (PLACE) Gracie Geikie, PLACE Communications Director Letitia Samuel, PLACE Coordinator Alex Oomen, their respective team members and volunteers for an awesome job in ensuring this massive 5 day multi-event operated smoothly daily.

The Sarawak Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA)

logo/words credit: SSPCA

The SSPCA began its work in Kuching in 1959, formed by a small group of expatriate officers who were moved by the sight of the diseased dogs and sick animals that roamed the streets. It was legally registered under the Registrar of Societies as the “Kuching Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (KSPCA) on 11 September 1962.

In 1977, the Society changed its name to the Sarawak Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or SSPCA. In the years that followed, dedicated volunteers and their very active cadre of Junior Members, organised awareness - raising events, rescued and re-homed stray animals, initiated a pilot neutering scheme, and organized fundraising events.

They were also instrumental in reaching an agreement with the local councils in Kuching to house and care for all the stray animals picked up by these councils. It’s an agreement which has carried through to this day, and remains the only formal arrangement between an animal welfare organization and local councils in Malaysia. 

Perhaps their most notable achievement was securing tax-deductible status for the Society. This has proved an invaluable asset to the Society in its fundraising efforts.

In 1999, through the generosity of the Sarawak State Government, the SSPCA secured a 0.6-acre piece of land at 61/2 mile Penrissen Road, Kuching on which to build its animal shelter. In the years since, this little piece of land has served as a refuge, a haven for thousands of stray, abused and abandoned animals.

Some have been fortunate enough to be given a second chance at life, others have lived out their days in the loving care of our shelter staff, and many have gone on to the ‘Great Kennel in the Sky’. As our finances improved, we expanded and improved the Shelter facilities and services to cater for the ever-increasing number of animals brought to our door. Unfortunately, this meant having to make sacrifices and utilise the exercise/play areas.

At the moment SSPCA is taking care of mostly stray and abused animals. The shelter mainly depends on donations from the public to run its operations. It has six full time staff assisted by volunteers to care for 260 animals.

The society needs almost RM30,000 every month for the shelter upkeep and to provide medical care for the animals. Besides caring for the animals, SSPCA is also working at getting a new home for them. All the animals will be given proper care and treatment before being put on the adaption program.

The shelter is now getting overcrowded with the increasing number of animals there and the growing development surrounding the area. Hence, SSPCA is looking at building an integrated purpose-built Animal Village. The Animal Village is estimated to cost RM1.8 million to build and SSPCA hopes to raise as much from all its fund raising activities to achieve this dream.

For more info and to support the SSPCA’s initiatives click here

THE ASIA FOR ANIMALS (AFA) COALITION

logo/words credit: AfA Coalition

The Asia For Animals (AfA) Coalition is composed of 16 well-known and respected animal welfare organisations that share a focus on improving the welfare of animals in Asia. AfA is committed to providing support to organisations with their campaigns to tackle some of the most pressing animal welfare concerns in the region.

The AFA International Conference is the largest, most representative Asian animal welfare platform for animal welfare experts, NGOs, activists, members of the public, private corporations and governments to consolidate and share experiences, with an eye to developing new strategies and facilitating long-term change.

Since its establishment in 2001, this biennial conference has welcomed delegates from all across the world, and been held in Manila, Hong Kong, Chennai, Bali, Chengdu, thrice (2005, 2010 and 2013) in Singapore and this year in Kuching, Sarawak.

For more information on the issues covered by AfA please click here.