Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said international advisory panel (IAP) panel members, during their closed door meeting with him on Thursday, encouraged the inclusion of biotechnology and design in the MSC.
He told a press conference that biotechnology research is expected to drive the next wave of technological innovation.
Mahathir also said these new areas will require more aggressive efforts in the recruiting and training of a skilled work force.
Asked whether he was satisfied with the ability of the MSC to attract global tech companies to set up shop in Cyberjaya, Mahathir gave a mixed response.
"Admittedly, some of these investments (by global companies) are quite small but there are others which have made the MSC their regional hub."
Mahathir had recently admitted that the MSC has not performed as well as he had envisioned at its inception in 1996.
The multi-billion-dollar project has drawn criticisms from a variety of players--local as well as foreign--as they claimed there were a lot of bureaucratic interference in the running of the operations.
Others have said that there were not enough skilled personnel overseeing the project.
Mahathir also said that the advisory panel comprising tech personalities like Intel's executive vice president Michael Rawding, Sun Microsystem's chief researcher John Cage, recommended that the MSC place more emphasis on attracting small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
"The SMEs are critical in the success of the MSC and more effort should be given to support their development," he said.
Meanwhile, Mahathir said the MSC was still looking for a third party interested in developing the E-Village.
The E-Village has been mired in problems ranging from lack of funds to complete the project, to contractors demanding payments for services rendered.
The project was launched last year, envisioned to become a hub for Asian filmmakers.
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