BY NEVILLE TIMOTHY SANDERS & LILIANA SHERYN
KUCHING: The outcome of the third Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) conference will be analysed by the state government with a view to craft fresh strategic initiatives to support Post COVID-19 Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS2030).
In stating this, Minister of Education, Innovation and Talent Development of Sarawak (MEITD), Datuk Roland Sagah Wee Inn then stated the ministry was working closely with various stakeholders, including Higher Educational Institution (HEIs) and the various industry sectors to increase STEM awareness and achieve 60 per cent of students in STEM related courses and disciplines by the year 2030.
“The development of communication, critical thinking and problem solving skills will also be an important part of our learners’ talent development voyage.
“This will be an important step forward in our quest to ensure our graduates will be industry-ready and able to thrive in an increasingly Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous (VUCA) global environment,” he said.
His speech was read by permanent secretary of MEITD, Azmi Bujang ahead of the offiial closing ceremony at Pullman Hotel here
Sagah added he was confident that in the near future, there would be an increase in cross-border collaborations between the stakeholders in the BIMP-EAGA region covering the broad spectrum of the student and staff exchange programmes, new programme development and strategic tie-ups between the state, TVET institutions and the various industry sectors.
“With fresh opportunities for collaboration developed during this conference, it is indeed timely that joint initiatives across the BIMP-EAGA region will enable all of us to raise the bar in providing the very best industry-relevant education to the populace.
“This is also in line with the aspiration of the ASEAN Secretariat to ensure that greater TVET collaboration must exist in BIMP-EAGA, and yes TVET has come to the fore in improving livelihoods across the globe,” he added.
Over 450 delegates from four countries, namely, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and the Philippines participated in the two day conference.
Also present during the ceremony was chairman of Sarawak Skills Development Centre Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr Abdul Aziz Datuk Husain alongside other distinguished guests.
