The Prime Minister of Malaysia , YAB. Dato' Seri Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi  launched the Royal Professor Ungku Aziz Chair and The Centre for Poverty and Development Studies at the University of Malaya on 9 November 2006.

 The establishment of the Chair and the Centre bears testimony to the  Prime Minister's personal commitment to the eradication of poverty and an improved standard of living for all Malaysians. Malaysia has been very successful in eradicating poverty and this is exemplified by the decline in absolute poverty levels from 49.3 percent in 1970 to 5.1 percent in 2002. Malaysia 's unfaltering commitment to the eradiation of poverty has enabled it to attain the majority of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) including the first MDG of eradicating extreme poverty and hunger. Malaysia has also performed favorably in terms of development indicators including the Human Development Index where Malaysia is currently ranked .

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