Najib urges companies to offer more training programmes

Thursday June 10, 2010




KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians must re-skill themselves to be in line with the country’s aspirations to become a high-income economy, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.



Writing in his 1Malaysia blog, he said he was proud of the workforce but, as he had cautioned when introducing the New Economic Model, having one largely equipped with a Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) certificate alone was not in line with Malaysia’s aspirations.



“The solution, as I see it, must be a re-skilled labour force, so that all Malaysians (and not just school leavers) are armed with the right knowledge to meet employers’ needs,” he said.



He stressed that education must not end at school or university, but continue throughout one’s working life.



“I would strongly encourage all my working age readers to take up opportunities for ongoing self-development. As a rule of thumb, I would like to urge those who were unable to make the cut into colleges or universities or the equivalent, to continue seeking knowledge.



“I strongly encourage all Malaysians to find ways to enrol themselves into more practical education channels such as vocational schools and polytechnics,” Najib said.



He said he would also like to see more companies offering apprenticeship programmes for fresh graduates as well as employees.



The Prime Minister said there must be a conscientious effort within the business community to upscale all aspects of operations and management, including the development of a value-added workforce.



Commenting on the current poll on his blogsite where he had invited readers to list the academic qualification they had when they entered the workforce, Najib said early results suggested that most respondents possessed an SPM or lower, with those holding an undergraduate degree coming in second.



He said although this sample was not representative of the population, it was somewhat mirrored by the Statistics Department findings, showing that 77% of the working population or 60% of the entire nation entered the workforce with an SPM qualification or equivalent in 2007. – Bernama

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/6/10/nation/6440264&sec=nation