Malaysia’s drone industry is ranking 21st in the DRI, up from the 30th spot last year. (Photo: Bernama(
Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – The Malaysian Research Accelerator for Technology and Innovation (MRANTI) under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation said in a statement on February 20 that Malaysia is the top-ranked Southeast Asian country in the Drone Readiness Index (DRI).
Malaysia’s drone industry is ranking 21st in the DRI, up from the 30th spot last year.
The result showed Malaysia’s commitment to quickly promote its potential in the drone industry.
This puts the drone industry in Malaysia on a clear growth trajectory with the potential to contribute 50.71 billion MYR (11.45 billion USD) to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and create 100,000 job opportunities by 2030.
According to MRANTI, the yearly updated DRI is based on six indicators of applicability, human resources, operational scope, administrative infrastructure, airspace integration, and certification.
The report indicated that countries and territories with the strongest increase in drone readiness are the United Kingdom, Brazil, Switzerland, Taiwan (China), Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, and China.
Malaysia achieved a 100% rating in applicability, human resources, and certification, with areas to improve in operational scope (50%), airspace integration (40%), and administrative infrastructure (25%).
MRANTI Chief Executive Officer Dzuleira Abu Bakar said that the achievement of the DRI is an early outcome of the Malaysia Drone Technology Action Plan 2022 – 2030 (MDTAP30) and other initiatives which involve strong collaboration by multiple agencies and stakeholders.
She said the MDTAP30 key missions focus on the development of a national Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) system, a digital drone registration portal, special drone use-case adoption in key sectors, and talent development such as the accreditation of Remote Pilot Training Organisations (RPTO).
In 2021, MRANTI, the coordinating agency and secretariat for MDTAP30, launched Area57, a centre of excellence to boost the drone industry in Malaysia./.
