JTDC TO ADDRESS JOHOR SKILLED WORKER SHORTAGE ALONGSIDE JS-SEZ

JOHOR BAHRU, July 18 (Bernama) -- The lack of skilled manpower in the state needs to be overcome to meet the talent needs of industries in line with the establishment of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) soon.

Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi said that efforts to overcome the lack of skilled manpower are very important to achieve the vision of Johor as a developed state by 2030.

According to him, since January 1, the number of jobs in the state has increased rapidly with 74,710 job vacancies advertised.

"However, only 51,946 job applicants were recorded, and according to statistics, 22.3 per cent of graduates in Johor are working in sub-par jobs and 20 to 60 per cent of Vocational College graduates in Johor are working outside the field due to mismatch.

"Therefore, the state government has proposed that the Johor Talent Development Council (JTDC) be established, at a special meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and attended by other Cabinet Ministers including Higher Education Minister Datuk Royal Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir; Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek and Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeohdi in the capital," he said in a statement today.

Onn Hafiz said some of the proposals that were discussed and agreed upon during the meeting included making JTDC a one-stop centre together with Invest Malaysia Facilitation Centre Johor (IMFC-J) to facilitate all operations, recruitment and the entry of investors in Johor.

"Next, make JTDC a Liaison Centre between Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and industry to increase talent development programmes, skill enhancement, and direct career placement.

"Also agreed is to carry out a study of the success of existing programmes and courses, as well as the retargeting of courses that coincide with industry needs and finally make JTDC a Data Collection Centre by Ministries, Agencies and Stakeholders for workforce studies and industry needs," he said.

Accordingly, he is confident that the establishment of JTDC is a two-pronged framework that is able to increase the marketability of graduates as well as meet the needs of the industry, especially in Johor and Malaysia as a whole.

"God willing, with a comprehensive policy and solid support from all stakeholders, I am confident that JTDC will play an important role in making Johor a developed state and become the main reference in meeting the need for sufficient and sustainable skilled manpower," he said.

-- BERNAMA