The University of the Philippines (UP) will confer the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, to Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on March 2, 8:45 a.m., Thursday, at the UP Theater in UP Diliman, Quezon City, during his official visit to the Philippines.
J. Prospero E. De Vera III, Chairperson of the Commission of Higher Education (CHED) and Chairperson of the UP Board of Regents, and Atty. Angelo A. Jimenez, UP President and Co-Chair of the UP Board of Regents, will officiate the conferment of the honorary degree to the Malaysian Prime Minister.
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the 10th Prime Minister of Malaysia, will afterward deliver his lecture entitled “30 Years from ‘Asian Renaissance’: Strategic Takeaways for ASEAN” for the audience consisting of members of the academic community, diplomatic corps, government officials, and the media.
Anwar Ibrahim is an internationally renowned expert on Jose Rizal and economics, democracy, freedom, governance, Islam and democracy, and the need for accountability. He is respected for his principled stance against corruption and his management of the Malaysian economy during the Asian financial crisis.
Anwar Ibrahim served as Malaysia’s Deputy Prime Minister from 1993 to 1998 and Minister of Finance from 1991 to 1998. He served as Minister of Culture, Youth, and Sports in 1983; Minister of Agriculture in 1984; and Minister of Education in 1986. Malaysia enjoyed unprecedented prosperity and economic growth during his tenure as Finance Minister.
His prescriptions saved the Malaysian economy during the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997 and earned Anwar accolades, including the Asian of the Year from Newsweek International.
Anwar held lecturing positions at St. Anthony’s College at Oxford, the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University, and the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University since the early 2000s.
He was sworn in as Prime Minister by King Al-Sultan Abdullah on November 23, 2022.
On March 1, the Prime Minister was welcomed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. The two leaders held a bilateral meeting and exchanged views about areas of mutual concern for Malaysia and the Philippines, as well as regional and international issues.
(This article, written by the UP Media and Public Relations Office, was first published on the UP System website on 1 March 2023)