PUTRAJAYA, April 23 (Bernama) -- The National Permata Kurnia Centre, a centre specifically built for children afflicted with autism, will bring on board other relevant ministries to develop a national plan for the condition.

The prime minister's wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor said the centre would also be working closely with the women, family and community development ministry to make it a centre of excellence, as envisioned by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak yesterday.

"As First Lady, I have opened the doors. The wheels have been set in motion," said the patron of the Permata programme when delivering her closing remarks at the International Seminar on Autism 2014 (Isam 2014) here at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre Wednesday.

Officiating the seminar, Najib said the centre would be the first-ever project for children with disabilities, to be fully funded by the government, and would provide early intervention and early childhood special education to 300 children with autism, aged between two and six.

Rosmah said research and development (R&D) were important to make work regarding the issue evidence-based, and extensive research on the genetic basis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) had given opportunities for finding disease-causing variants and mutations, both de novo and heritable.

She said the Permata Specialist Children's Hospital and its associated Medical Molecular Biology Research Institute at the National University of Malaysia had the next generation sequencing platforms.

"I hope we can forge research collaboration with international partners. Our researchers had informed me that is a good way of sharing data across different populations and ethnic-groups which will make our understanding on autism better," she added.

Rosmah said the two-day seminar had achieved its objectives which were to enhance awareness on ASD to provide a forum to deliberate related issues; establish a network of cooperation between relevant parties; and, empower parents, families and communities for effective support system.

"In the beginning, we were uncertain and even worried about the attendance even though the online response was very good. Our worry was unwarranted. Not only was the response and attendance overwhelming, they remained enthusiastic till the end.

"This seminar has given me renewed hope and optimism for a brighter future for people living with autism," she said.

The seminar has made it to the Malaysia Book of Records for the largest number of participants in an international seminar on autism, at 1,814.

Source:Bernama