About SEARCCT

Enhance regional competence in countering terrorism through quality and comprehensive capacity-building programmes;
Conduct and publish research in significant areas of terrorism and counter-terrorism;
Implement effective soft approach initiatives in countering extremism via strategic communications;
Promote public awareness and disseminate information on the threats of terrorism and measures taken to counter them; and
Establish and strengthen strategic partnerships at the local and international level.

Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (PCVE)
Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive (CBRNE) and Crisis Management
Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP)
Investigation and Legal Aspects
Terrorism Financing

Creating and implementing effective modules and programmes to develop participants’ knowledge and technical know-how on counter-terrorism efforts;
Providing effective platforms for the consultation of experts, knowledge-sharing and collaborative research; and
Promoting the empowerment of stakeholders to be the medium for CVE through strategic communications.

Welcome to SEARCCT
Official Website

Dear Visitors,

Warmest greetings and welcome to the official website of the Southeast Asia Regional Centre for Counter-Terrorism (SEARCCT).

The events of September 11, 2001 unequivocally changed the face of global terrorism and counter-terrorism efforts forever. Just two weeks after the attacks on the World Trade Centre, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1373 under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, obligating States to implement more effective counter-terrorism measures at the national level and to increase international cooperation in the struggle against terrorism. This provided the impetus for SEARCCT’s establishment in 2003, with a core mandate and mission in mind.

More than two decades on, the Centre has evolved well beyond that original remit. The threats we confront today are decentralised, digitally mediated, and often ideologically diffuse, which demands a different kind of institutional response. SEARCCT’s mission is to build national and regional resilience grounded in trust, mutual respect, and social cohesion.

Terrorism today is transnational; terrorist groups are known to operate beyond fixed borders and coordinate themselves across transnational networks. It has therefore become all the more crucial for us to initiate and sustain engagement in this field, especially by leveraging regional and global platforms available to us. As an entity under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, SEARCCT utilises its involvement in regional and international organisations to push for sound solutions to security threats afflicting the region.

Central to this mission is SEARCCT’s role as a bridge between government agencies and civil society. Long before the formal adoption of the Malaysia Action Plan on Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (MyPCVE) in 2024, the Centre was already fostering engagement across sectors on PCVE. MyPCVE now provides the necessary framework to strengthen that coordination, recognising that effective enforcement is strengthened when supported by the wider community.

The growth of compelling online narratives by violent extremist groups remains a significant concern. SEARCCT’s emphasis on soft approaches addresses this by translating research into community-led counter-narratives and equipping stakeholders to produce credible alternative messaging, targeting radicalisation before ideology hardens into intent.

Rigorous research remains the bedrock of our approach, while training courses, conferences, forums, and webinars strengthen the community of practitioners at home and abroad. These resources, alongside our growing online repository of research and publications, support SEARCCT’s five flagship areas: Investigation and Legal Aspects; CBRNE and Crisis Management; Critical Infrastructure Protection; Terrorism Financing; and PCVE.

As a society of diverse ethnicities and religions, we must endeavour towards peaceful coexistence, firmly shutting the door on extremist forces and hateful rhetoric that seek to divide us. Our commitment, through the MyPCVE framework, is to a security architecture that endures because community resilience and institutional capability reinforce each other.

It is my hope that in browsing through this website, you will find valuable information and insights on the range of counter-terrorism and PCVE efforts in Malaysia, and be able to learn more about the important work SEARCCT and its partners are pursuing.

Datin Paduka Nur Ashikin Mohd Taib
Director General
Southeast Asia Regional Centre for Counter-Terrorism (SEARCCT)
Ministry of Foreign Affairs Malaysia

Datin Paduka Nur Ashikin Mohd Taib
Ketua Pengarah
H.E. Datin Paduka Nur Ashikin Mohd Taib
Director General of Southeast Asia Regional Centre for Counter Terrorism (SEARCCT)

Her Excellency Datin Paduka Nur Ashikin Mohd Taib is a career diplomat who has dedicated over thirty years of service to the Government of Malaysia, having been appointed into the Administrative and Diplomatic Service in 1994. Her diplomatic career began at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1995.

Throughout her tenure at the Ministry, she undertook assignments across various divisions, including Western Europe, Global Economy and South-South Cooperation, Training and Development, Information and Public Diplomacy, and Policy and Strategic Planning.

Her overseas postings include serving in Paris, Brussels, Dhaka, and Stockholm. Notably, she served as the High Commissioner of Malaysia to Bangladesh from 2016 to 2019, and subsequently as the Ambassador of Malaysia to Sweden from 2019 to 2023, with concurrent accreditation to Denmark, Iceland, and Norway.

In recognition of her service, she was conferred the Darjah Dato’ Paduka Mahkota Selangor (D.P.M.S) in 2019, which carries the title Datin Paduka. In 2024, she was further honoured with the Darjah Johan Setia DiRaja (J.S.D).
- Encik Suresh Kumar A/L K. Rengasamy
  Timbalan Ketua Pengarah - Dasar
  R. Suresh Kumar
  Deputy Director General (Policy)
  
  R. Suresh Kumar joined the Malaysian Civil Service in 2000.
  
  Prior to this appointment, he was the Undersecretary of Africa Division, Undersecretary of Bilateral Economic Diplomacy Division, the Director of the Centre for Language and Cultural Diplomacy, Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations (IDFR), Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was also acting Undersecretary of Americas Division, Department of Bilateral Affairs (2022-2023), Deputy High Commissioner at the High Commission of Malaysia in Ottawa, Canada (2019-2022) and was the Advisor to Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia and Chairman of Land Public Transport Commission, Malaysia (SPAD) (2012-2017).
  
  During his early years in diplomatic service, he also held position as Deputy Director at the Ministry of Health.
  
  R. Suresh Kumar received his Master in Political Science from International Islamic University Malaysia in 2012. He is an alumnus of Northern University Malaysia majoring in International Relations.
  - Asrul Daniel Ahmad
    Pengarah - Bahagian Komunikasi Strategik Digital (BKSD)
  - Kennimrod Saribuja James Pasaribu
    Pengarah - Bahagian Penyelidikan & Penerbitan (BPP)
- Ambassador Kennedy Mayong Onon
  Timbalan Ketua Pengarah - Khidmat Pengurusan
  Ambassador Kennedy Mayong Onon
  Deputy Director General (Management Services)
  
  Ambassador Kennedy joined SEARCCT in early March 2025. He began his diplomatic career at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Malaysia, in 1997.
  
  Prior to his current role, he served as the Undersecretary of the South and Central Asia Division. His career at the Ministry also included positions within the Multilateral Security Division and the Multilateral Economic Division.
  
  He was appointed as the Ambassador of Malaysia to the Republic of Croatia in 2021, and his overseas postings included New York, Vietnam, Finland, and Cambodia.
  - Mega Nopija Khalidi
    Pengarah - Bahagian Khidmat Pengurusan (BKP)
  - Supt. Siti Maizatulakmal Ismail
    Pengarah - Bahagian Perancangan & Latihan (BPL)