KUALA LUMPUR: MINISTRY of Education and four industry leaders will work together to enhance technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in the country.
Under the partnership, the four companies — Berjaya Corporation Bhd, Tropicana Corporation Bhd, Naza Group and Top Glove Corporation Bhd will provide training, facilities, workshops, and career opportunities and networks for TVET students.
During the inking ceremony of the Certificate of Collaboration (CoC) at [ihc-hide-content ihc_mb_type=”show” ihc_mb_who=”2,3″ ihc_mb_template=”1″ ]Berjaya Hotel, Minister of Education, Dr Maszlee Malik, said in his speech read by Datuk Kamel Mohamad, Education Ministry deputy secretary–general for strategic planning – TVET is important in alleviating the mismatch in supply and demand of skills, future-proofing of students towards the Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR4.0) and increasing graduate employability.
“However, greater national efforts are needed to increase TVET enrollment and accelerate the local talent upskilling, which calls for stronger collaborations and partnerships with industry leaders.”
“This collaboration represents a large step that the public and private sectors are undertaking to take TVET to the next level. The ministry is committed to establishing many more ground-breaking partnerships, not just for TVET, but also to improve the overall education ecosystem of the country,”
Berjaya Corporation CEO Datuk Seri Robin Tan said the collaboration would provide a platform for students to obtain real work experience and career opportunities.
He added expanding smart partnerships through such collaborations would help ensure the sharing of industry knowledge and practices, facilities and technology for innovative technical and vocational education.
At the press conference, Kamel said: “As we work with partners to support their readiness, a new generation of talent must emerge to deliver the demand for highly-skilled talent in the industry.
“That will act as a fuel to power our industries with local talents that can compete globally,” he said.
He noted, collectively the four companies represented more than 35,000 employees and had a total annual revenue of RM14 billion.
“Together, we will share knowledge and create a seamless partnership between the public and private sectors,” he added.
Top Glove adviser for manufacturing and operations Datuk Dr Andy Seo said his company had recruited 118 TVET graduates this year but aimed to raise the number of new recruits to 1,000 next year.
Besides industry partnerships, MoE has collaborated with the Ministry of Human Resources for a working paper to adapt TVET education in line for IR4.0, partnered with MDEC and ME.REKA to provide Maker Markets — a space for IR4.0-themed learning experiences, and work with Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) and Jabatan Pembangunan Kemahiran (JPK) to expand access into TVET courses by allowing flexible entry points.
MOE has also conducted six zonal town halls for TVET engagements, set up a TVET task force to strengthen TVET education, and created a TVET framework for education.
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