BANTING: The additional RM200 million allocation approved by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will be distributed to Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions next month, says Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The Deputy Prime Minister said the allocation would be distributed based on the courses offered for this year’s first intake of TVET students.
Ahmad Zahid, who also chairs the National TVET Committee, said the additional funding would focus on areas such as electric vehicles, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, advanced materials, electronic technology, farm mechanisation, agricultural automation and livestock farming.
“We hope that with this allocation, technical training in industries such as palm oil can commence next month, as the necessary infrastructure is already in place,” he said after the opening ceremony of the National TVET Day 2024 celebration at the Kuala Langat Industrial Training Institute (ILP) here on Saturday (June 8).
Earlier, when officiating the event, Anwar announced the government’s approval of an immediate RM200mil allocation to strengthen and boost youth participation in TVET fields.
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Meanwhile, Ahmad Zahid also said that various international companies are prepared to offer higher starting salaries to TVET graduates, recognising the industry’s demand for skilled workers provided by these institutions.
“In discussions with several international companies, they have indicated a willingness to pay a minimum salary of over RM4,000 (US$1,000), and MoUs have been signed with these firms.
“Training will be tailored to the specific needs of these companies and factories to prevent job mismatches and redundancies,” he said.
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He was responding to the Malaysian Employers Federation’s (MEF) Salary Survey for Executives 2023, which involved 262 private companies and revealed that only 39.6% of employers hire TVET graduates.
The report indicates that most private employers are still unaware of and accept TVET graduates poorly, and they are not significantly involved in recruiting graduates from TVET institutions. – Bernama
