Riot (second from right) and others applaud after the launching of the Human Resource Summit Seminar: Resource Skills & Competencies 2016 Sarawak. — Photo by Muhammad Rais Sanusi
KUCHING: Malaysia has some catching up to do to increase its skilled workforce from the current 28 per cent to at least 40 per cent to become a high income and developed nation.
Skilled workers refer to those with at least a diploma in skills training. Any qualifications lower would be considered semi skilled.
Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Richard Riot Jaem said he was told during his recent official visit to Germany that the country’s percentage of skilled workforce was 77 per cent.
“We are only 28 per cent, which is far below the 40 per cent required to become a high income and developed country,” he said when officiating at Human Resource Summit Seminar: Resource Skills & Competencies 2016 Sarawak here yesterday.
Riot said the government wanted to increase the percentage of skilled workers to 35 per cent by the year 2020.
“We are now in 2016, so we have a few more years to go to increase the percentage of skilled workforce by seven per cent.” Riot said his ministry had provided 32 industrial training institutes, including one in Kota Samarahan and another one in Miri. The ministry also provided facilities for reskillling and upskilling training.
Meanwhile, the ministry’s director-general (Skills Development Department) Datuk Dr Pang Chau Leong said the government, through the Skills Development Department, had provided many opportunities for upskilling of workers.
“For example, the Skills Development Department had approved 1,184 training centres across the country. They offer more than 5,800 training programmes to increase the skills of our workers.
“In Sarawak, more than 80 private and public training centres that offer 430 training programmes were approved by the Human Resources Ministry through the Skills Development Department.”
Pang said the seminar held yesterday was for information exchange and to enable participating agencies to explain opportunities available for Sarawakians to increase their skills.
Among those present were the ministry’s secretary-general Datuk Seri Adenan Abd Rahman and Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) Industry Talent Management division director Ismail Abu Bakar.