KUCHING: The Sarawak Public Works Department (JKR) has inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Sarawak Skills on training and development programmes for its staff, including officers.
Assistant Infrastructure and Port Development Minister Datuk Julaihi Narawi, who attended the signing ceremony here today, said the collaboration would be a boon to the state’s technical manpower needs in view of the number of ongoing mega projects.
“Today’s MoU signing is the right move by both Sarawak Skills and Sarawak JKR.
“We are in need of more youths who can be trained to be part of the industry, especially when these megaprojects are ongoing,” he said in his speech at the Sarawak Skills auditorium.
Julaihi pointed out that the state relied heavily on skilled workers and technical manpower brought in from other states and countries.
“We should realise now that we must be training our own technical manpower. The moment we complete all these mega projects in three to five years’ time, we have our own ready technical manpower.
“This means that we will be more prepared if we have more mega-projects in the future.”
He also suggested that the state having an abundance of technical manpower would encourage people to work outside of Sarawak, providing technical manpower service to other countries in the future.
“This means we will not only improve the level of technical manpower that we have but also export these services overseas, giving us an advantage in terms of foreign exchange.”
Sarawak JKR was represented by director Datuk Zuraimi Sabki and deputy director (corporate affairs) Wisil Lichok, while Sarawak Skills was represented by executive director Hallman Sabri and deputy executive director (education, training and student services division) Zakri Md Salleh.
Other than the use of Sarawak Skills’ resources in Kuching, Sarawak JKR would be able to run training programmes at Sarawak Skills learning centres in Miri and Mukah.
In addition, for certain training and development programmes which are considered specialised, Sarawak Skills can bring in its strategic partners nationally and internationally.
It will also offer over 60 courses from 10 clusters in engineering, quantity surveying, draughting to government staff from all over the state.
