Touch2Read team wins first place at 3rd SULAM Innovate Competition 2025

By, Afifah Syahmina

GOMBAK, 30 November 2025: Touch2Read team under Usrah In Action course secured first place at 3rd Service Learning Malaysia (SULAM) Innovate Competition, which took place at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UNISZA) from 25th to 26th November 2025.

The competition was an initiative under the Ministry of Higher Education that integrates academic learning with meaningful community engagement.

In an interview with IIUMToday, Head Project, Muhammad Aiman Mohd Johari expressed his gratitude upon being announced as the winner. “We didn’t expect to win because our main intention was simply to highlight the importance of the project and share its impact with others.” He also added that this project was mainly to support the blind and visually impaired (BVI) students.

Touch2Read formally began under Usrah In Action with the guidance from Project Advisor and Instructor, Dr ‘Atiah Abdullah Sidek. The students carried out community profiling to understand the specific challenges faced by BVI students, the early research found the lack of accessible Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) learning materials.

“We develop a STEM reference book in both Braille and tactile format for SPM BVI students,” said Muhammad Aiman when asked about the project. He also shared that these materials are being used at SMK Pendidikan Khas Setapak.

Touch2Read also collaborated with several NGOs, Mahallah Aminah, Mahallah Asiah, KL Braille Resources, AMTECH and UNESCO Jakarta. This collaboration allowed the team to produce materials that are accurate and meaningful for the BVI community.

Touch2Read also has garnered multiple awards like Gold Award and Most Promising Project at the IIUM 6th and 7th Symposium, Top 10 Finalist ESD Okayama Award 2025 in Japan and Gold Award at UEIiRIEx’25 Al Multaqa Al Omani. ***