Ali Rustam to be conferred USM Honorary Doctorate

GEORGE TOWN, March 25 (Bernama) -- The Yang Dipertua Negeri of Melaka, Tun Mohd Ali Rustam will be conferred with the Honorary Doctor of Development Economics - Hon. D. Dev. Econs - by Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) on Tuesday (March 29).

He will receive the honorary doctorate from USM Chancellor Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Putra Jamalullail, who is the Raja of Perlis, during the first session of the university's 59th convocation ceremony at Istana Arau, Perlis.

USM vice-chancellor Professor Datuk Dr Faisal Rafiq Mahamd Adikan said the honorary degree was in appreciation of Mohd Ali's outstanding contributions in the field of economics which gained various recognition at the national and international levels.

"Tun Mohd Ali, who is also USM's leading alumni (Alumni Terbilang USM), is a personality who has contributed immensely to the advancement of knowledge, development as well as dissemination of knowledge and expertise.

"His achievements also proved that graduates in the field of Social Sciences can contribute to the development of society and the country as a whole," he said in a statement today.

Faisal Rafiq said the first session of USM's convocation ceremony will commence on Tuesday (March 29) at Istana Arau, followed by the second to 12th sessions at USM's Dewan Tuanku Syed Putra here from May 21 to 31.

He said the convocation ceremony will see a total of 6,706 graduates who will receive various degrees, namely PhD and master's degree (2,231 recipients), bachelor's degree (4,425) and diploma in nursing (50).

Meanwhile, the convocation ceremony's second to 12th sessions will be presided by USM pro-chancellors Tan Sri Dr Zulkefli A. Hassan, Tan Sri Mustafa Mansur and Tan Sri Dr M. Jegathesan.

Faisal Rafiq also said that for the second session to the 12th session, the awarding of the degrees will be conducted in one session daily with the breakdown of the sessions to be announced soon.

-- BERNAMA