TAR UMT MOU SIGNING CEREMONY

SPEECH BY YAB TUAN CHOW KON YEOW

THE CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG

TAR UMT MOU SIGNING CEREMONY

17 JANUARY 2023

Prof. Ir. Dr Lee Sze Wei

President of Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology (TAR UMT)

Dato' Seri Dr Ooi Eng Hock

Chairman of Persatuan Kebajikan 88 Kapten Pulau Pinang (88 Captains)

Mr. Andrew Lim

Portfolio Head of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Maritime Southeast Asia

Mr. Alan Chang

Managing Director of Singapore Corporate Services

Mr. Chee Yuh Sheang

General Manager of Cortex Robotics

Mr. Lee Kim San

Chief Operating Officer (COO) of NationGate Solution

 

Mr. Diken Chuah

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of PingSpace

 

Mr. Jaffri Ibrahim

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of CREST

Industry leaders,

Distinguished guests,

Members of the media,

Staff and students of TAR UMT,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Salam Sejahtera and a very good morning to all of you.

First and foremost, I would like to thank TAR UMT and the ‘88 Captains’ for inviting me to today’s MOU Signing Ceremony. It is encouraging to see so many industry players working together with the education sector to develop and train young talents, who will eventually contribute to Penang and Malaysia as a whole.

Allow me to also take this opportunity to congratulate TAR UMT for its recent upgrade to a full-fledged university status. By the virtue of being 53 years old, it stands proud as one of the oldest and most established institutions of higher learning in Malaysia.

For TAR UMT or any organisation to stand the test of time and to grow to where it is today, requires hard work and collective efforts from many stakeholders, both in front and behind the scenes. This is therefore, a truly significant moment for TAR UMT, and I extend my heartfelt congratulations to you.

Before I proceed further, I would also like to thank all members of the ‘88 Captains’ for banding together and pooling your resources to raise funds to help the state's underprivileged students. I am proud that, despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, an NGO founded in May of last year was able to raise substantial funds in such a short period of time and be ready to disburse them to deserving students early this year. Congratulations and well done, ‘88 Captains’!

Ladies and gentlemen,

Manufacturing in Penang contribute significantly to our GDP and economic growth. Over the past 50 years, Penang’s manufacturing sector has transitioned from semiconductor assembly lines to becoming an advanced technology hub. The pioneering E&E multinationals continue to thrive, and we now have various research and development centres. Medical devices, diagnostics and aerospace sectors have emerged, and green technology manufacturers are expanding.

To achieve greater heights, there is a need for industries to fully embrace automation and digital transformation, such as robotics, the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence and machine learning. We envision a future Penang with a digitally integrated urban lifestyle that provides more productive jobs with higher wages from new and forward-thinking industries.

To realise this vision, we must intensify our efforts to create an enabling ecosystem powered by relevant technologies and a skilled workforce. As all of you, industry leaders, may know, there is currently more demand than supply, and industries are having difficulty in hiring talents and retaining highly skilled workers.

One reason for this is students' declining interest in science and technology. Worryingly, only 31.8% or 4.91 million of employed persons in Malaysia are tertiary educated as of 2021, according to Department of Statistics Malaysia. This is a major concern for the entire country, not just Penang. To retain and attract investors, we must produce graduates who are skilled and competent enough to meet the industry's demands.

The Penang State Government has been addressing this issue since 2017 through the Penang STEM initiative, a platform that brings together six centres that collaborate with the North-East Education Department to spark students’ interest in STEM-learning, particularly at the lower secondary levels.

Penang STEM is made up of the Penang Skills Development Centre (PSDC), Penang Science Cluster, Tech Dome Penang, @CAT, Penang Math Platform, and Penang Digital Library. The six centres combined have more than 250 STEM-related programmes, and each has been well received and successful in their own ways.

I am glad that TAR UMT is also collaborating with Penang Science Cluster, Tech Dome and other organisations to promote lifelong learning among your staff and students.

Not to mention, I am especially pleased that the MOU today between TAR UMT and the respective industrial partners, aims to foster an ecosystem for industry-academia linkage so that they can collaborate to develop industry ready talent through various academic activities.

For example, the company provides assignment questions that correspond to the courses offered at TAR UMT and relevant industrial problems or project titles for FYP or capstone projects. Students' skills and knowledge will also be enhanced through skill enhancement modules, guest lectures, workshops, or webinars, while they offer flexible work placement or structured internship programmes. This indeed contributes greatly to the state ongoing efforts to build a healthy ecosystem in which the people and economy of Penang can thrive and flourish.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Participation of youth in STEM activities will lay the groundwork for a more robust digital economy and the 4th Industrial Revolution. However, not enough of the younger generation have sufficient awareness and access to quality STEM education. I would like to see opportunities available, not only to the urban youth, but also to rural youth and those who have been neglected or left behind. It is our hope that by 2030, talents will be abundant, and no manufacturing firms will face obstacles in talent recruitment.

As such, I would like to take this opportunity to encourage more industry playerd to collaborate and support the state's STEM initiatives to help cultivate an industry-ready talent pool as we move forward. Your support is critical in realising the Penang2030 vision which focuses on improving liveability, economy, civil participation and balanced development to achieve “A Family-Focused Green and Smart State that Inspires the Nation”.

On that note, I wish TAR UMT, industry leaders and all of you here a great success, and Happy Chinese New Year in advance!

Thank you.

Pejabat Ketua Menteri Pulau Pinang Tingkat 28, KOMTAR, 10502, George Town, Pulau Pinang