Local technical field continues to expand in line with IR 4.0, says PM
KUALA LUMPUR: The technical field remains relevant and continues to expand in the country in line with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0), said Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (pic).
The Prime Minister said for this purpose, the government had allocated RM6.6bil under Budget 2022 to strengthen Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
“This field is frequently misinterpreted as the second choice which is only suitable for individuals with academic achievements that are not excellent. Actually, this stigma is obsolete because graduates of technical education and training programmes and TVET are getting increasing attention from employers,” he said.
He said this when launching the National Technical Profession Day (HPTN) 2021 celebration which was held virtually on Saturday (Dec 4).
Ismail Sabri said the country now has many world-class technology-based companies and the majority of them were pioneered by technical professionals.
As such, the Prime Minister said job opportunities in fields related to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematic (STEM) and TVET are very bright and should not be missed by Keluarga Malaysia (Malaysian Family) especially the youth.
He said these job opportunities were the result of careful planning done by the government since 2013, beginning with the introduction of the National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy which encourages the use of advanced technology to produce expert and skilled technical professionals.
He said as of this year, Malaysia has had 203,966 members registered in various fields of expertise related to the technical profession.
The government had introduced various initiatives and strategies relating to the technical field through the implementation of comprehensive and holistic policies which incorporated the views of various quarters including experts, he added.
The views and advice came from, among others, the Works Ministry; International Trade and Industry Ministry; Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry; Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit (Mampu) and national technical agencies such as the Public Works Department (JKR) and Drainage and Irrigation Department (JPS).
The views of the private sector and industry practitioners were also considered in this matter, he said.
“This is to ensure that the technical field in this country remains sustainable and competitive. In line with IR 4.0, the global economy is undergoing rapid transformation through new technological achievements which transcend the physical, digital and biological realms.
“The advent of new technologies such as automation, robotics, artificial intelligence (A-l), machine-to-machine (M-2-M) and internet of things (l-o-T) has changed the way the world operates,” he added.
Ismail Sabri said to ensure that the country was not left behind by the wave of change and technological explosion, the government had introduced the National Fourth Industrial Revolution Policy.
This policy is an initiative which reflected the government’s aspiration to transform Malaysia with inclusive and sustainable socio-economic development that is anchored on digitalisation, to turn it into the regional leader in digital economy, he said. – Bernama