RIBAT Showcases Local Talent And Innovation In Defence Industry

By Maizatul Jamny Muhammad Rosli

LANGKAWI, May 20 (Bernama) -- Behind its compact and rugged design, the country's first high mobility light tactical vehicle (HMLTV) RIBAT holds an extraordinary story of determination, courage and the capability of local talent willing to take great risks for the advancement of the country's defence industry.

Fully designed by Mildef International Technologies Sdn Bhd (MILDEF), the armoured vehicle is not just a symbol of physical strength, but also reflects the perseverance of a local company in creating a defence asset which, it was assumed all these while, could only be produced by advanced countries.

In an exclusive interview with Bernama, MILDEF managing director Datuk Seri Mohd Nizam Kasa shared that the idea to create RIBAT came about following their success in producing the earlier model, the high-mobility armoured vehicle Tarantula.

"RIBAT is a type of specially-designed vehicle we felt was needed after the company produced the Tarantula. This vehicle is compact and suitable for all types of missions… it can operate at the borders (or) any assigned tasks,” he said.

More interestingly, Mohd Nizam said RIBAT, which carries high symbolic value and refers to the spirit of guarding and defending the country based on faith, patriotism and technology, was named by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim himself.

In conjunction with the  Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition 2025 (LIMA’25), which began today, Anwar also launched RIBAT at the MILDEF Pavillion of the Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre (MIEC), thus making the company the first producer of national tactical armoured vehicles.

Behind the success of RIBAT's production lies an even bigger achievement as it was fully designed by Malaysians, right from the sketching, research and development (R&D) and production stages to the final tests… everything was done domestically.

Mohd Nizam said that about 60 to 70 per cent of the vehicle's components, which are equipped with a modular ballistic protection system and designed for missions such as patrols, convoys and special operations, were developed by local engineers while its components, such as the engine and transmission, were imported before being assembled and tested in the country.

"This RIBAT is 100 per cent locally designed, from the first sketch and drawing right up to in-house manufacturing… we did the integration, commissioning and testing all by ourselves at our factory in Sendayan, Negeri Sembilan,” he said.

He shared that the idea to build RIBAT came about from a sense of national responsibility and the need to be self-reliant in terms of the country's military asset development, without having to depend on foreign support, including maintenance.

Although it was a huge challenge, he said it took them two and a half years to complete the vehicle, from design and prototype evaluation to mobility testing, weapons integration, communications systems and protective features.

Mohd Nizam said the development also produced a strategic collaboration between MILDEF and the Defence Science and Technology Research Institute (STRIDE), a prominent research agency under the Ministry of Defence.

This was done through the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) by focusing efforts on the development of two more tactical vehicle platforms that will be fully designed domestically.

However, he said that what is more encouraging is RIBAT's ability to directly compete with international products, with MILDEF now targeting the export markets in South Asia and the Middle East, where demand for high-quality defence technology is rising.

He added that the company is actively involved in global defence exhibitions, including in Abu Dhabi (the United Arab Emirates), France, the Philippines and Vietnam.

In addition to developing military capabilities, he said the initiative also opened the way for economic growth and domestic human capital development, considering that RIBAT also serves as a platform to train youths in technical fields through the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programme.

"This is an added value… besides generating our economy, we are also creating job opportunities and developing skills among our youths and children under the TVET,” he said.

With a clear long-term vision, he said MILDEF plans to produce tracked vehicles and special operations vehicles within the next two years, thus making Malaysia one of the countries with its own defence technology capabilities.

-- BERNAMA