Page 18 - Mainstreamer e-Magazine Volume 1, Issue 3 - August 2023

IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE
PWDs aged between 19 and 59 years old. With a
big percentage of registered PWDs aged between
19 and 59 years old who could contribute to
national economic development, the government
could take further steps to provide a better
environment for these PWDs to equip them so that
they can contribute from different perspectives.
The Persons with Disabilities Act 2008 [Act 685]
grants welfare and basic rights to PWDs. Sections
26 to 31 of Act 685 clearly state the access rights
of PWDs to (1) public facilities, amenities, services,
and buildings; (2) public transport facilities; (3)
education; (4) employment; (5) information,
communication, and technology; (6) cultural
life; (7) recreation, leisure, and sport. Through
related ministries and agencies, the government
is responsible for ensuring these accessibilities’
success to safeguard the rights and welfare of
PWDs.
Besides, the Strategic Plan of the Ministry of
Women, Community and Family Development
(2021-2025) states the initiative of the government
to empower the quality of life of PWDs through
four strategies: (1) strengthening policy, legislation,
and research of PWDs; (2) supporting independent
living of PWDs; (3) increasing community
understanding and acceptance against the PWDs;
(4) empowering social support for the PWDs.
The government has demonstrated reasonable
effort to protect the rights of PWDs with a
comprehensive institutional framework. However,
these initiatives could be upgraded by employing
emerging technology, including AI, to improve the
quality of life of PWDs.
AI and PWDs in Malaysia
In 2021, the government, through the
Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation
(MOSTI), launched the Malaysia National Artificial
Intelligence Roadmap (AIRMap) 2021-2025. The
vision of AIRMap 2021-2025 is as follows:
‘Make Malaysia a nation where Artificial
Intelligence augments jobs, drive national
competitiveness, encourages innovations
and entrepreneurship to bring economic
prosperity, social good and improve people’s
wellbeing’.
There are seven principles in the AIRMap:
17 Vol. 01, Issue 3 | August 2023
(1) fairness; (2) reliability, safety, and control;
(3) privacy and security; (4) inclusiveness; (5)
pursuit of human benefits and happiness; (6)
accountability; (7) transparency. Meanwhile,
AIRMap defines AI as follows:
‘A suite of technologies that enabled
machines to demonstrate intelligence, the
ability to adapt with new circumstances,
and used to amplify human ingenuity and
intellectual capabilities through collective
intelligence across a broad range of
challenges’.
The main AI subfields include vision,
speech, and robotics, encompassing software
robots, machine learning and natural language
processing. Meanwhile, intelligence examples
include perception, reasoning learning, problem-
solving, language understanding, comprehension,
consciousness, alertness, realisation, awareness,
intuition, and acumen.
With the aim and strategies in AIRMap, the
government could consider using AI to enhance
the quality of life and wellbeing of PWDs in
Malaysia.
Conclusion
Notwithstanding the above, collaboration
among government agencies is a must to
incorporate AI into the PWDs policies. MOSTI is
primarily responsible for STI development, MWFCD
is responsible for PWD issues, and the Ministry
of Economy is responsible for budget allocation
planning. Collaboration and good coordination
across ministries are critical and required to
establish a common understanding among these
government agencies that AI can improve the
quality of life of PWDs, which will then be reflected
in public policymaking.
The author is an Administrative and Diplomatic Officer
at the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation
(MOSTI). Graduated from the University of Malaya, her
Ph.D. research focused on the participation of civil society
in public policy-making, particularly in the Universal
Periodic Review (UPR), an international human rights
review mechanism. She enjoys reading, sports and outdoor
activities during her free time.
(Disclaimer: This article is purely informative and does
not represent any government entity. The author’s views
are independent and not reflective of official government
positions.)