PRESS CONFERENCE ON FLEXTRONICS SPONSORSHIP CHEQUE HAND OVER CEREMONY
SPEECH BY YAB TUAN CHOW KON YEOW
THE CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG
PRESS CONFERENCE ON FLEXTRONICS SPONSORSHIP CHEQUE HAND OVER CEREMONY
3RD FEBRUARY 2023
YB Prof. Dr. Ramasamy a/l Palanisamy
Deputy Chief Minister (II) of Penang cum Chairman of Penang STEM
Mr. Richard Chung
General Manager of Penang STEM
Mr. William Khoo
Chief Executive Officer of Tech Dome Penang
Mr. Johnny Ong
General Manager of Penang Math Platform (PMP)
Mr. Chee Khang Chan
General Manager of Flextronics A1
Mr. Eng Chok Tang
General Manager of Flextronics P5
Ms. Maizatul Akmar Binti Abdul
Senior HR Manager of Flextronics P5
Mr. Arun Shesayee
Human Resource Manager of Flextronics A1
Mr. Sanjeet Mohan
Learning and Development Manager of Flextronics P5
Distinguished guests,
Members of the media,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Thank you for joining us in today’s press conference.
Penang, as we all know, is the country's economic powerhouse, buoyed by its robust ecosystem and driven by both the manufacturing and service industries. 2022 was indeed, a year of great celebration for Penang, as it marked the completion of its five-decade industrialization journey.
This achievement, coupled with the thriving industries that we have in Penang today, was not an overnight occurrence but a culmination of strategic planning and execution, both by the government and private sectors.
Moving forward, Penang is committed to attracting and retaining investors by creating an enabling ecosystem powered by relevant technologies and particularly, a skilled workforce.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In addition to continuing to be the nation's top exporter in December 2022, with a contribution of 30.8 percent of total exports, as recently announced by the Department of Statistics Malaysia, Penang, is also one of the top contributors to the country in approved manufacturing investments, with RM9.2 billion from January to September 2022, according to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA). As a result, it is estimated that 12,754 new job opportunities will be created in Penang in stages over the next few years.
However, the demand for skilled workers is currently outpacing supply, making it difficult for industries to retain highly skilled workers and hire talents. One reason for this is students' declining interest in science and technology.
To address this issue, the State Government through its mission of ‘Creating Future Talent’ has been actively working to promote STEM education and ensure that the labour market in Penang remains relevant to the needs of the industry.
Tech Dome Penang, Penang Science Cluster, Penang Math Platform, @CAT, Penang Digital Library, and PSDC are some of the STEM centres within the Penang STEM ecosystem that are stepping up their efforts to offer technical and academic learning opportunities for students and school leavers as well as for adults.
For example, a total of 117,298 primary and secondary school students were trained in various topics under the field of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) for the period from January to December last year. The six centres combined have about 1,586 sessions of STEM-related programmes last year, and each has been well received and successful in their own ways.
To continue this effort in 2023, the Penang State Government has allocated a total of RM2.18 million for the various STEM centres through the Penang 2023 Budget. At the same time, we are grateful to have the numerous supports of industry players, which are crucial in ensuring the success of the state’s initiatives.
As such, on behalf of the Penang State Government, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize and express our sincere gratitude to one such industry player, namely Flextronics Penang, who have been a strong supporter and a significant sponsor of our STEM programmes since 2019.
To date, Flex had generously contributed RM260,000, including the mock cheque of RM 93,000 that will be presented by them later. This is to support the STEM-related programmes that had benefited about 14,830 students, teachers and working adults. In addition, Flex is one of two companies that has adopted the schools under the StepUP programme, while they actively participate in talks and seminars organized by Penang STEM.
We fervently hope that Flextronics Penang will continue to lead the way in supporting the state’s STEM initiatives and inspire others to do the same. It is our goal that by 2030, talents will be abundant, and no manufacturing firms will face obstacles in talent recruitment.
On that note, I would like to end by encouraging more industry players to join hands and support the state's ongoing initiatives. Your invaluable contribution is imperative in nurturing a talent pool that is ready for the industry, and will help us progress further towards the Penang2030 vision of “A Family-Focused Green and Smart State that Inspires the Nation”.
Thank you.