News

In today’s development landscape, good intentions are no longer enough.

Civil society organisations (CSOs) operate in an increasingly outcome-driven environment where accountability, measurable results, and evidence-based practice determine both credibility and sustainability.

Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation (MLE) is not an administrative burden. It is the backbone of responsible implementation.

On 24 January 2026, our Deputy Director, Dr Mohd Nazri, together with partners from Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), National Anti Drugs Agency (NADA) Sabah, Hospital UMS, PERDESA, PEMADAM, and ISSUP Malaysia Chapter, supported Sekolah Menengah Lok Yuk, Kota Kinabalu in conducting a Parental Engagement Program on the dangers of vape and electronic cigarettes.

These moments capture the heart of our workshop on developing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for handling mental health issues among adolescents.

Through case-based discussions, group work, and guided reflection, teachers and counsellors strengthened their capacity to:

• recognise early signs of mental health concerns

• respond appropriately to varying levels of risk

Have a look at these moments from our Family-Based Prevention (Family Strengthening) Programmes.

These sessions focus on strengthening protective factors within families — because strong families are the foundation of resilient communities.

Through guided activities, parents and children learn to:

• communicate more openly and respectfully

• strengthen emotional bonding

ISSUP Malaysia continues to strengthen its commitment to evidence-based prevention by implementing integrated programmes that nurture resilience among adolescents, families, and communities. Grounded in prevention science and guided by social-emotional learning (SEL) principles, our ongoing initiatives aim to equip individuals with the skills, support, and environments needed to thrive amid today’s social and emotional challenges. 

As 2025 comes to a close, I pause with gratitude.

ISSUP Malaysia, together with PPD Bau, teachers, counsellors, and community partners, successfully held the Mental Health Carnival 2025 at Dewan Suarah Bau today.

On 1–2 December 2025, ISSUP Malaysia participated in the Capacity Building Workshop on Citizen-Generated Data, organised by the Malaysia CSO–SDG Alliance (MCSA) in collaboration with the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) and hosted at SOSDA, Kuching.

A national drug policy must begin with people — their lives, their struggles, their families, and their capacity to heal.

As advocates, we carry a responsibility far greater than raising issues.
We must bring evidence, experience, and truth from the ground into the policy conversation.

ISSUP Malaysia successfully convened its 1st EXCO Meeting for 2025 on 13 November 2025. The session was productive, engaging, and aligned with our continued commitment to strengthen prevention, treatment, and recovery support across Malaysia.

The meeting began with an appreciation to all EXCO members for their ongoing dedication. Emphasis was placed on maintaining ISSUP Malaysia as a credible, professional, and globally aligned chapter in the Asia-Pacific region.