The 2026 World Population Day celebration, organised by the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (KPWKM) through the National Population and Family Development Board (LPPKN), focused on strengthening the voices, aspirations and future of young people within Malaysia’s population development agenda. Guided by the theme “Realising the Hopes and Aspirations of Young People – Today and the Future,” the celebration recognises that young people are not merely the inheritors of the future, but a vital force already shaping the direction of families, communities and the nation today.
In conjunction with the celebration, LPPKN organised the LPPKN Research Grant 2025 Findings Seminar on 14 and 15 July 2026 at the Auditorium of the Asian International Arbitration Centre (AIAC), Kuala Lumpur. The seminar is being held in strategic collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Malaysia and Universiti Malaya (UM), providing a platform to highlight locally generated research findings on population, family and reproductive health issues.
The seminar was officiated by YBhg. Dato Sri Rohani Abdul Karim, Chairman of LPPKN who also launched the Compilation of Findings from the LPPKN Research Grant 2025. The programme commenced with a keynote address by Dr Julitta Onabanjo, UNFPA Representative for Malaysia, while the closing ceremony officiated by YB Puan Lim Hui Ying, Deputy Minister of Women, Family and Community Development.
A key highlight of the seminar were the presentation of research findings by 20 recipients of the LPPKN Research Grant 2025 from public and private higher education institutions. The studies generated valuable evidence to inform policy discussions, strengthen programme design and support the development of more targeted interventions. This initiative reflects LPPKN’s commitment to ensuring that research extends beyond academic discourse and is translated into practical actions that deliver meaningful benefits to society.
As part of the celebration, LPPKN also convened a Population Forum entitled “Building the Families of the Future: Realities, Aspirations and Intergenerational Perspectives.” The forum were moderated by Ms Tehmina Kaoosji, Director of Communications at The Big Picture (TBP) Communication. The panellists are Mr. Hairil Fadzly bin Md Akir, Deputy Director-General (Policy), LPPKN; YB Howard Lee Chuan How, Secretary-General of the Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (AFPPD) and Member of Parliament for Ipoh Timur; Mr. Azman ‘Azhim Roslan, Adviser to Malaysian Youth Diplomacy (MyDiplomacy); and Dr. Syarifah Fatimah Al-Zahrah Al-Attas, Senior Lecturer at International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM).
The forum expected to offer a timely and engaging space for dialogue on how young people view marriage, family formation, work-life balance, economic security and the social support needed to build the families of the future. By bringing together perspectives from public policy, youth leadership, strategic communication and academia, the discussion aims to deepen understanding of young people’s aspirations within the evolving landscape of Malaysian families.
The seminar further strengthened through a Research-to-Development (R2D) Showcase, undertaken in collaboration with UNFPA Malaysia and Universiti Malaya’s Community and Sustainability Centre. The R2D approach is designed to translate high-potential research findings into more focused interventions, advocacy initiatives and programmes. Through this process, research evidence can be more effectively utilised by policymakers, programme implementers and strategic partners.
Overall, the celebration successfully achieved its objectives by strengthening the use of evidence in population and family development, generating strategic insights from the LPPKN Research Grant 2025 findings, and also fostering stronger collaboration among researchers, policymakers, international organisations and programme implementers. It also created meaningful pathways for translating research into practical, targeted and high-impact actions that can benefit families and communities across Malaysia.
