KUANTAN, Aug 1 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the empowerment of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in the country is needed to produce better-trained graduates and thus enjoy better wages.
Although the percentage of TVET students obtaining employment is high, he is still unsatisfied with the pay received by these skilled graduates, who are still generally paid below RM2,000 compared to TVET workers abroad, who enjoy much better income.
“The target should be between RM2,500 to RM3,000 or higher from the existing level. This has been proven and not a theory. In Germany, the experience is more focused on TVET, and as such, graduates earn higher wages. For decades, our salary has been flat, rising only a little,” Anwar said.
He was speaking at the Kuantan Meet Anwar programme at Kolej Kemahiran Tinggi MARA (KKTM) earlier today, which was also attended by Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail and Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek.
The proposal to improve TVET training and skills has been voiced by several industry players, including Tesla Sdn Bhd (Tesla), during the discussion before proposing some additional elements to the skill education.
The improvements, according to Anwar, can be carried out through the cooperation between TVET education institutions with industry players at the actual locations like national car manufacturer Proton, to assist TVET in Pekan, which was also called the Pahang automotive city, or China’s automotive company Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co Ltd (Geely) in Tanjung Malim, Perak.
Replying to a TVET student on obtaining sponsorship abroad, the Prime Minister said the government has no objection if there is a need for sponsorship in specific fields unavailable in Malaysia.
At the event, Anwar also announced a special RM5 million allocation to improve TVET institution infrastructure in Pahang, which was applauded by the nearly 5,000 students present.
During the engagement programme, he also advised the younger generation not to easily believe all the information on social media as many untrue things are being disseminated.
Although new technology like social media is essential and can bring good, at the same time it can also be harmful if used ‘without knowledge and without checking’, making it a challenge for the younger generation.
“Is social media important? Yes. Practical? Also yes. But it needs to be used correctly and not be fooled. Social media has benefits, that is why I say think about it. Train children to take advantage of these facilities, but there is also a need to read.
“This (social media) is a very important requirement to find information quickly, but we also need to read, check and filter. No knowledge can be mastered in just one or two minutes (as displayed on social media),” Anwar said.
— Bernama
