SHAH ALAM: The government has declared 2017 as technical and vocational education and training (TVET) year in an effort to achieve a high-income developed nation by 2020, says Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Richard Riot.
He said the initiative was also in line with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s 2017 Budget speech that TVET capacities would be enhanced under the budget.
“Although the issue was not officially announced before this, if we look at Najib’s speech in the 2017 Budget, the word, TVET was emphasised. This means that with the emphasis, the word TVET will directly and indirectly become pivotal for the government’s efforts to produce more skilled human capital,” he added.
Riot said this at a press conference after handing over accreditation to Proton Holdings Bhd as a one-stop centre for the National Dual Training System (SLDN) programme at the Proton Excellence Centre here yesterday.
In the 2017 Budget speech, Najib had said TVET education capacity would be enhanced with an allocation of RM4.6 billion to TVET institutions. Riot said to achieve a high income developed nation, highly skilled workforce was needed and so far, only 28 per cent of the Malaysian workforce were skilled workers.
“On its part, the government targets to achieve at least 35 per cent by 2020,” he said.
On another note, the minister said the National Economic Council had approved the proposed Employment Insurance Scheme (EIS) to assist retrenched workers, and a paper to that effect was expected to be tabled in Parliament by January next year.
Riot was reported to have said that the scheme, which required workers and employers to contribute as practised in the Social Security Organisation (Socso), was important to ensure retrenched workers were able to last at least four months before getting a new job. — Bernama