The proposed Malaysia–Cambridge Urban Platform, an initiative led by the Ministry of Housing and Local Government with REHDA Institute is aimed at tackling the affordability issue in the housing sector.
The closed-door session brought together representatives from the Ministries of Housing and Local Government, Economy, Transport, and Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability, alongside senior industry stakeholders and academics from the University of Cambridge.
The discussions centred on two key themes shaping Malaysia’s future housing landscape. The first examined how housing affordability should be measured to better inform policies on housing supply, subsidies, financing and infrastructure investment.
The second explored the integration of smart city technologies to balance affordability, sustainability and liveability, including the use of advanced data analytics, modelling and digital tools to improve spatial planning and better anticipate future housing demand.
“Malaysia’s housing challenge is not simply about how many homes we build. We must also ask whether we are building the right homes, in the right locations and at prices that households can genuinely afford—not only at the point of purchase, but throughout the period of ownership,” REHDA Institute Chairman Dato’ Jeffrey Ng Tiong Lip said.
He added that the roundtable had brought together government, academia and industry to examine housing issues from multiple perspectives, with the discussions expected to continue at the upcoming Regional Housing Conference 2026.
The proposed Malaysia–Cambridge Urban Platform is envisioned as a long-term collaboration that translates international research into practical policy solutions for Malaysia.
According to Jeffrey, the platform aims to bridge the gap between academic research and policymaking by ensuring proposed solutions are grounded in practical realities and implementation challenges.
“Academic research can sometimes focus on criticising existing policies without proposing viable alternatives or understanding the practical constraints faced by policymakers,” he said.
“Our aim is to establish a shared knowledge base through partnership, co-creation and knowledge co-production involving academia, government and industry.”
Housing Minister Nga Kor Ming described the initiative as an opportunity to strengthen collaboration between researchers, policymakers and industry practitioners.
“The Malaysia–Cambridge Urban Platform has great potential to become an intellectual bridge between research, policymaking and implementation. By bringing together scholars, governments and industry leaders, this platform can help translate research into practical solutions, not only for Malaysia, but also for the wider Asia-Pacific region,” he said.
Findings from both the report and the leadership roundtable will be presented and further discussed at the Regional Housing Conference 2026, scheduled for July 29 at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC).
