(Seated from left) Ho, Jayaselan, Wahid, Yeah, Chua, (standing from left) Adrianta, Kamal, Wong, Subramaniam, Ishak, Tan and Khaidzir giving the thumbs up.
— FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
Awards should expand to encourage more innovations
By: Yip Wai Fong
The third Malaysia Developer Awards (MDA), a joint force between Star Media Group and the International Real Estate Federation’s Malaysian chapter (FIABCI-Malaysia), once again served as a platform to recognise Malaysia's outstanding developers, selected through a rigorous evaluation by a twelve-member panel of judges.
Led by three chief judges, the panel meticulously assessed the entries vying among others for the Top-of-the-Charts suite of awards, consisting the Top 10 winners, Best in Quantitative and Best in Qualitative for companies with market capitalisation of RM1bil and above, and companies with a market capitalisation of RM1bil and below. This year, the MDA also retained the special categories of Transformation Awards, Rising Star Awards and International Awards.
Returning for the third year, Bursa Malaysia chairman Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar once again helmed the role of chief judge. He was joined by the National Housing Department director general Datuk Jayaselan Navaratnam and Jeffrey Cheah Institute’s economics studies programme director professor Yeah Kim Leng.
The panel of judges also included:
- Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM) president Adrianta Aziz
- Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers’ Association (Sheda) president Augustine Wong
- Sabah Housing and Real Estate Developers Association (Shareda) president Datuk Chua Soon Ping
- Real Estate and Housing Developers' Association (Rehda) president Datuk Ho Hon Sang
- Malaysian Institute of Property and Facility Managers (MIPFM) president Ishak Ismail
- Institute of Malaysian Property Agents and Consultants (IMPAC) president Kamal Abd Ghafur Korusamy
- Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia (RISM) immediate past honorary secretary-general Khaidzir Abdul Rasip
- Association of Valuers, Property Managers, Estate Agents and Property Consultants in the Private Sector Malaysia (PEPS) president Subramaniam Arumugam
- Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) president Tan Kian Aun
Going green and tech-driven
The entries saw a clear shift towards green architecture, said Adrianta. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
Commenting on the entries, the panel has unanimously noted the prominence of environment, social and governance (ESG) features, welcoming it as a sign of ESG practices being mainstreamed in development and are prioritised by discerning developers.
Another noticeable feature is the use of technology in design and enhancement of housebuyers’ journey and experience.
“This year’s entries for the Malaysia Development Award (MDA) 2024 demonstrate a clear shift towards sustainability and adaptive reuse, reflecting a growing commitment to green architecture and the preservation of heritage,” said Adrianta.
“We also observed innovative responses to urban challenges, with many submissions integrating smart technologies and community-centric designs. These trends highlight the industry’s focus on balancing modernisation with environmental and cultural sensitivity, aligning well with Malaysia’s broader vision of sustainable development,” he added.
“This year, many entries showcased innovative solutions aimed at environmental sustainability, reflecting a growing awareness among developers about their impact on the ecosystem,” said Ishak.
“A majority of participants have showcased impressive trends reflecting both innovation and commitment to social responsibility. A notable shift towards modern design that integrates high-tech innovations, including AI applications, was evident,” said Subramaniam. “There was a strong emphasis on sustainability, with many projects embracing ESG principles, for responsible building practices.”
Subramaniam said modern designs that integrate high-tech innovations, including AI applications, were evident in the entries.
Developers are moving towards finer qualities, Khaidzir observed.-AZMAN GHANI/The Star
Khadzir, a returning judge for the third year, said that entries have also reflected a trend of maturing towards the finer qualities.
“Developers have become ever more attuned to the market not just in terms of the obvious, such as shifting towards the affordability segment, but also market nuances and niches that can potentially be a game changer,” he shared. “From year to year, both eye-observation as well as data provided will tell you a story of how the industry is steadily shaping itself, not by making big bold moves, but maturing into a more refined value proposition.”
Setting taller benchmarks
To encourage the industry to continue reaching for higher, chief judge Yeah said that the winning concepts or outstanding features of the entries should be made widely known.
“The ultimate goal is to spur greater efforts toward raising overall industry standards and quality, and importantly, provide homeowners with sustained increases in property values as well as higher satisfaction and better quality of life associated with a safe, clean and sustainable environment.”
Other judges recommended expanding the awards to encourage inter-disciplinary collaboration, more digitalisation and the showcasing of local cultural diversity.
“To further elevate the competition, we recommend encouraging deeper interdisciplinary collaboration between architects, urban planners and developers to address complex societal challenges. Additionally, introducing categories that emphasise emerging areas—such as climate resilience, social inclusivity, and smart city innovations—could foster a more diverse range of projects. Lastly, increasing public engagement through exhibitions and forums can promote awareness of the significant role architecture plays in nation-building,” said Adrianta.
“I would suggest including a dedicated category that focuses solely on innovative technologies and digital integration in real estate. With the rise of smart cities and digital tools for community management, this could encourage participants to push the boundaries in technology adoption. Additionally, incorporating a feedback segment for each entry could provide participants with valuable insights, helping them refine their approaches and set new standards for future submissions,” said IMPAC’s Kamal.
Chua recommended a new category that showcases cultural diversity and preservation. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
“The rich diversity of our culture and art should be taken into priority to reflect our values. It can be made a special category to encourage our fellow developers,” said Chua.
Ho suggested deepening the emphasis on ESG and the digitalisation of construction methods, in line with the national and global agenda of cutting down greenhouse gas emissions.
“From my observation, those who embrace ESG efforts have a good chance to win, compared to others. This is hardly surprising as sustainability has been in the forefront of developments in this day and age,”he said.
“The developers should demonstrate their capabilities in adopting technologies in construction such as BIM, IBS, green certification and robotics. At the same time, more efforts should be seen from them to actively reduce the number of labours, especially foreign labours.
“A measurement to calculate each company’s achievements in their efforts to reduce carbon emissions should also be introduced. I believe that these will greatly contribute to efforts to reach the target laid out in our national Energy Transition Roadmap, which is to achieve net zero emissions by 2050,” he elaborated.
Ho suggested going deeper into ESG and technology integration.— FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
More sustainability
Overall, chief judge Wahid observed continuous improvements in the entries, and forecasted that developers will continue to make strides in adopting ESG.
“It is indeed my privilege to be involved in MDA for the third year where I have seen continuous improvement in the submissions. In particular the developers are paying a lot more attention to sustainability and use of technology in their development. This means the submissions are a lot more comprehensive this year.
“Given the importance of sustainability/ ESG, we can expect greater weighting being applied on ESG as well as the use of technology in the design, construction and community building,” he said.
“It is indeed my privilege to be involved in MDA for the third year,” said Wahid.
Judges were listening attentively during a presentation. —FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
The chief judges at a judging session - (from left) Jayaselan, Wahid and Yeah.— FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
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