SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOWS

DR ZULKIPLY OMAR

(+603) 7967 2646 | dzulomar@um.edu.my

Dr Zulkiply Omar is a Senior Research Fellow at SWRC. He holds a PhD in Economics from Southern Illinois University, USA. He completed his Bachelor’s Degree and Master’s Degree at the same university. He has been awarded a Certificate in Leading Economic Growth from Harvard Kennedy School of Harvard University, Cambridge. He was a Senior Research Fellow at the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER) from 2015 to 2019. He had served as a Deputy Rector/Dean at the Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS) in Tashkent,Uzbekistan from 2012 to 2014. Dr Zulkiply is currently a Managing Partner of Econsult Economic Consulting SB.

DR HALIMAH AWANG

Google Scholar Profile

(+603) 7967 3719 | halima@um.edu.my

Dr Halimah Awang is a Principal Research Fellow at SWRC. She holds a PhD in Applied Statistics from Macquarie University, Australia. Her research interest includes social protection, ageing, education and sexual and reproductive health. Her ongoing research projects include understanding ageing and retirement, savings adequacy among EPF members, social protection programmes in the ASEAN region and Return to Work Programme of injured workers. She was also involved as a research consultant for the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development, National Population & Family Development Board (LPPKN), PLUS Expressways Berhad and Social Institute Of Malaysia.

She was an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Economics and Administration, University of Malaya from 2005 to 2012. She has also served as an Academic Director at Stamford College in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia and is currently an Adjunct Professor (Academic) at Binary University, Malaysia. As an academician, she has published extensively in various international journals.

PROFESSOR DR YONG ZULINA ZUBAIRI

(+603) 7967 3743 | yzulina@um.edu.my

Dr. Yong Zulina Zubairi is a Senior Research Fellow at the Social Wellbeing Research Centre and is also an honorary Professor at the Institute of Advanced Studies, Universiti Malaya (UM). Her current research interests revolve around the critical domains of social security for the elderly, poverty and graduate employment. In the field of statistical modeling and methods, her research areas are linear functional relationship models for both circular and linear variables and survival analysis modelling. 

In her previous leadership roles as the Associate Vice-Chancellor (Global Engagement) and Director of International Relations Office, she drove the university’s global strategy, fostering partnerships and collaborations. Additionally, in her previous position as the Registrar of UM, her impactful work spans from talent management, addressing workforce skills, empowering women leaders, enhancing STEM education, and improving graduate employability. With a long-standing academic career spanning over 30 years, her contributions extend far beyond her administrative roles. Her scholarly achievements include numerous publications in reputable journals, alongside mentorship and supervision of over 30 postgraduates, and has secured many research grants both locally and internationally. Her recent grants include Catalyst Grants from the British Council UK-Malaysia Consortium, Asian Universities Alliance Grant and Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT). 

In the statistical community, she actively contributes to the Institute of Statistics Malaysia and serves on the Advisory Board for the Journal for Statistical Modeling & Analytics. She collaborates with the Department of Statistics Malaysia and the Central Bank Malaysia, lending her expertise to organize the annual MyStats Conference. A Commonwealth Fellowship alumnus, she actively engages in community works with   Association for Commonwealth Universities (ACU) and local NGOs, leveraging education for positive change.