AMBASSADOR LECTURE SERIES
Speaker: H.E. Mr. Shikata Noriyuki, Ambassador of Japan to Malaysia
Moderator: Distinguished Professor Dato' Dr. Rajah Rasiah, Distinguished Professor of Economics, Asia-Europe Institute, Universiti Malaya
Date: 29 October 2026 (Thursday)
Time: 10:00 am - 12:30 pm
Venue: Auditorium, Asia-Europe Institute, Universiti Malaya
Registration: Click here for online registration form
Japan and Malaysia share longstanding ties built on mutual trust, extensive economic cooperation and strong people-to-people connections. Their relationship was elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in December 2023, opening further opportunities for cooperation across trade and investment, economic security, energy transition, digitalisation, education, human capital development and maritime security.
This lecture explores the evolution and future direction of Japan–Malaysia strategic relations, with particular focus on Japan’s Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) vision. It will examine the importance of ASEAN centrality and regional cooperation in promoting peace, stability and prosperity, while highlighting opportunities for deeper collaboration between Japan and Malaysia.
H.E. Mr. SHIKATA Noriyuki has served as Ambassador of Japan to Malaysia since November 2024. He joined Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1986 after graduating from Kyoto University and later obtained a Master’s degree in Public Policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Throughout his diplomatic career, he has held senior positions in Japan and overseas, including in the Embassy of Japan in the United Kingdom and China, the Bureau of Asian and Oceanian Affairs, and the Economic Affairs Bureau. From 2021 to 2024, he served as Cabinet Secretary for Public Affairs at the Prime Minister’s Office under Prime Minister Kishida.
Distinguished Professor Dato’ Dr. Rajah Rasiah obtained his doctorate in economics from Cambridge University in 1992 and served as a fellow at Harvard University in 2014. He was the Executive Director of Asia-Europe Intitute, Universiti Malaya (2022-2026), Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business at UNIMAS (1999-2000) and Faculty of Economics and Administration, Universiti Malaya in 2009–2010 and 2013–2014. He also holds professorial fellow positions at the Centre for Rising Powers in Cambridge University, UNU-MERIT, and Technology Management and Development Centre in Oxford University. Among his prestigious awards include the Cambridge Journal of Economics Award by the Cambridge Political Economy Trust in 1992, the Robert McNamara Award by the World Bank in 1993, the Celso Furtado Prize for advancing the frontiers of Social Science thought (Economics) from the World Academy of Sciences in 2014, and the Merdeka Prize under the category of scholastic achievement in 2018 from the Merdeka Prize Committee. He was awarded the Distinguished Professor of Economics Position by the Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia in 2017.
Last Update: 14/10/2026