KUALA LUMPUR, July 20, 2026 – The Tun Abdul Razak Library (PTAR) at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) conducted a comprehensive benchmarking visit to Universiti Malaya (UM) today to observe best practices in the management of Jawi collections, gallery exhibitions, and knowledge digitization initiatives.
- PTAR UiTM delegates visited Universiti Malaya to explore heritage preservation and digital innovations.
- The tour included UM Immersive 120, Museum of Asian Art, and Za'ba Memorial Library for insights on Jawi manuscripts.
- The visit ended with a sharing session on archives, Open Science, and podcasts to inspire PTAR's future services.
The PTAR delegation was prominently led by the UiTM Chief Librarian, Ts. Haji Azizi bin Haji Jantan. He was accompanied by key PTAR officers, including Dr. Adlina Abdullah, Mr. Haji Ahmad Faizar Jaafar, and Mr. Abdul Razak Abdul Rahman.
The insightful tour commenced at UM Immersive 120, located within the UM Chancellery Building. This cutting-edge digital exhibition space features interactive visual displays of UM’s history, touchscreens highlighting the university's achievements, and futuristic multimedia installations that provide an engaging and innovative learning experience.
The delegation was then guided to the Sultan Nazrin Shah Gallery, which proudly exhibits a diverse array of artworks, including paintings, printmaking, and photography, beautifully reflecting the evolution of Malaysia's visual arts.
The visit continued to the Museum of Asian Art, where the delegation viewed a special exhibition on the kebaya. The briefing covered the history and unique variations of the kebaya across different Malaysian states and Southeast Asian countries, as well as its modern evolution into formal workplace attire. The museum also houses highly valuable heritage collections, including Asian pottery, traditional Malay weapons (such as the keris and spears), traditional musical instruments, and traditional Malay agricultural tools. Notable artifacts included a sugarcane press and a coconut milk extractor, showcasing the brilliance of early Malay engineering in daily life.
Next, the delegation visited the Za'ba Memorial Library, focusing deeply on its collection of Jawi manuscripts and historical documents preserved as national intellectual heritage. The delegates were briefed on how UM provides access to these collections to ensure that the wealth of knowledge remains available for future generations. This exposure provided immense inspiration for PTAR’s ongoing efforts to strengthen the management and digitization of heritage collections at UiTM.
To conclude the visit, a strategic knowledge-sharing session was held in the meeting room of the Za'ba Memorial Library. UM representatives shared various successful initiatives related to university archive activities, the implementation of Open Science, and Citizen Science programs. They also introduced their research podcast development initiative—a fresh, modern approach to disseminating academic research findings to the general public.
This benchmarking visit successfully opened new avenues for knowledge sharing, expertise transfer, and the exploration of strategic collaborations between PTAR UiTM and Universiti Malaya—particularly in heritage digitization, Jawi manuscript preservation, Open Science, and research empowerment.
