BANGI, Sept 4 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian Islamic Economic Development Foundation (YAPEIM) made history by securing its first entry in the Malaysia Book of Records (MBOR) under the “Most Guests Featured in a Podcast Programme” category.
YAPEIM Director-General Zabidi Nasan said the recognition marked an important first step in the agency’s efforts to foster a culture of knowledge and intellectual discourse within the community.
He said podcasts were chosen as the platform as they resonated with the public and had become an increasingly popular medium for delivering knowledge in a casual yet effective manner.
“The podcast is a platform that connects closely with the community and has become a popular medium today. People prefer information to be delivered in a casual yet effective manner,” he told the media after the MBOR recognition ceremony for YAPEIM here today.
Zabidi said podcast production required relatively little cost and space while offering extensive reach among Malaysians, with the potential to reach an international audience.
“It is easy to implement, requires neither significant cost nor large space, yet its reach can extend to all Malaysians and perhaps even an international audience,” he said.
He noted that the achievement did not mean YAPEIM would abandon intellectual discourse or more serious conferences, but that the podcast served as an additional medium for disseminating knowledge to the public.
“The primary goal of producing the podcast is to enrich the community with accurate knowledge and enable them to evaluate information and news based on the benchmarks of established disciplines,” he said.
The podcast was produced specifically in conjunction with the “Policy Dialogue 2026: Formulation of the Infak Governance Model and National Policy Resolution”, which focused on discussions on the Islamic economy, ummah development and economic sustainability grounded in human values.
The podcast recording sessions, held over 16 hours on July 23 and 24, produced 27 episodes featuring 31 guest panellists, including government figures, industry leaders, policymakers, representatives from financial institutions, academics and entrepreneurs.
The programme was held in conjunction with the Humane Economy Global Discourse 2026 (HEGD 2026).
Zabidi said YAPEIM would continue producing podcasts given the medium’s large following and suitability for disseminating knowledge to the public.
Meanwhile, he said YAPEIM aimed to improve its ranking among religious agencies by securing a top five position as part of efforts to strengthen its organisational performance.
“As a religious agency, we currently rank seventh, and this presents a challenge to the management. We are doing good work, so why not commit ourselves fully? Even a slight improvement would serve as initial momentum,” he said.
He stressed that the target must be achieved realistically through a continuous improvement approach, with every member of the YAPEIM workforce striving to ensure that today’s performance surpasses yesterday’s.
He added that the achievement aligns with YAPEIM’s 2023–2027 strategic direction, specifically “Projek Najah”, which seeks to build an ecosystem encompassing the economy, infak (charitable spending) and business activities in line with the agency’s mandate.
YAPEIM is an agency under the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs). Established on Oct 13, 1976, and relaunched in 1984, it is dedicated to improving the well-being of the ummah through Islamic economic development, educational assistance, community programmes and charitable contributions to those in need.
-- BERNAMA