TheInstitutes of UNIMAS

The Institute of Health and Community Medicine (IHCM) was founded in 1995 with the goal of studying diseases important in the region. The Institute’s founding member and its first director, Prof. Dr. Jane Cardosa, was instrumental in building up a world class laboratory with modern facilities with highly trained staff, to facilitate top notch research capacity in the land of Hornbills. Today, the institute is home to a team of talented researchers dedicated to investigating the causes and diagnosis of viral diseases of public health importance in the region. Most importantly, we have created and continue to strengthen links within our community and have contributed significantly to health issues relevant to the people of Sarawak.
Institute of Borneo Studies (IBS) formerly known as Institute of East Asian Studies (IEAS) was established on the 1st of March 1997 at the centre of University Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) in Kota Samarahan. The role of the institute is to promote research in all relevant areas to ensure deeper and holistic understanding of the socio-political dynamics of the East Asian region in the global context by taking into account the social, cultural, religious, historical, and civilizational aspects. The focus of research at IBS is the island of Borneo and Malaysia in the context of South-east Asia and East Asia a region undergoing drastic transformation as a consequence of unprecedented economic development and globalization.
The Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation (IBEC) was set up in July 1994 as one of the founding institutions within UNIMAS with the purpose of promoting research in two niche areas: Tropical Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation. Its teaching and research program are structured at the masters, doctoral and postdoctoral levels.
Institute of Social Informatics and Technological Innovations (ISITI), formerly known as the Centre of Excellence for Rural Informatics (CoERI) is a research institute in University Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) established in 2011. The institute aims to empower marginalized communities by developing and deploying innovative solutions catering to four niche areas: Community Sustainability, ICT for Development (ICT4D), Socio-Technical Innovation and Indigenous Knowledge Management. The institute is actively contributing to fourteen of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) proposed by the United Nations with its community based research projects in the rural areas.
The Institute of Sustainable and Renewable Energy (ISuRE) is a research institute in UNIMAS established in 3rd of January 2022. ISuRE is the name for the upgrading of the Center for Renewable Energy (CREN).
ISuRE was established to strengthen and rationalize the UNIMAS research, demonstration, and development efforts in sustainable and renewable energy technologies.
As we step into this new era, there are high technological demand for ecology, energy saving, resources, and preservation of environment. Development of technologies for alternative energy for the reduction of energy consumption is an emergent issue.
Institute For Tourism Research And Innovation (ITRI), formally known as Centre of Research for Image Analysis and Spatial Technologies (IMAST), was first established in 2007, as one of the two research centres anchored at the Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technologies (FCSIT), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS). The Center is committed in leadership role in fostering the UNIMAS’ goals as the partner of choice for technological advancement and discovery in Tourism Innovation and Spatial Technologies.


