BINTULU: Having certified and skilled Sarawakian workers would fulfill the aspirations of the state government’s Post-COVID-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030 of achieving 30% skilled workers.
“Improving the talents and skills of our local workers is one of the platforms to reduce our dependence on the hiring of expatriate workers,” said the Deputy Minister of Education and Talent Development (MEITD) at a recent knowledge-sharing and networking session held in Bintulu.
Harden mentioned that the government has introduced several mechanisms to encourage skills enhancement among local workers in the industry, including the Recognition of Prior Experiential Learning (RPEL) and IT personnel certification by the Malaysian Board of Technologists (MBOT).
The session aimed to reduce reliance on foreign workers and focus on the development of existing local workers’ career pathways while enhancing their skills and knowledge, said Harden.
The event was jointly organized by the Sarawak Skills Development Centre (PPKS) Miri, MBOT, and Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) Holdings Sdn Bhd, and about 120 participants from 65 companies in Miri and 56 companies in Bintulu attended.
Also present were MEITD Deputy Permanent Secretary Anielia Siam, PPKS Chief Commercial Officer Isham Fauzi, PPKS Miri Campus Director Syuhaira Mohd Zin, Associate Professor Dr Kartinah Ayupp (representative of the Chairman of Unimas Holdings Sdn Bhd), and Ahmad Zawawi Kasmin (chairman of the Association of Professional Technicians and Technologists (APTT)).
