THE LAUNCHING OF PENANG STEM SDN BHD

Speech by Chief Minister of Penang
At The Launching of Penang STEM SDN BHD

19 August 2017
Gurney Plaza

 

Ladies and gentlemen

Today marks an important chapter for Penang State Government in our effort to cultivate Science and Technology to encourage and awareness of Industry 4.0. I'm proud to be launching the island version of Penang STEM after having launched the mainland version last week with much success.

Klaus Schwab, the Chairman of World Economic Forum issues a warning that Industry 4.0 is fundamentally different from previous revolutions. It is not just a change in digital technology. It is a fusion of technologies and their interaction across the physical, digital and biological domains. It will fundamentally change the way we work and the way we live.

As you are aware, the Penang State Government has set the foundation for Penangites to be future ready, to benefit from the promises of the 4th industrial revolution and to avoid the perils of being left behind.

Over the past 6 years, the Penang State Government has been nurturing and establishing several STEM centres, namely the RM23 million Penang Science Cluster (PSC), the RM28 million Tech Dome Penang (TDP), the RM6 million Karpal Singh Penang Learning Centre (KSPLC), aCAT Penang (@CAT) and RM3.5 million Penang Digital Library (PDC). Each has been well received and successful in their own different ways.

However, not enough of our youth and children have sufficient awareness and access to quality Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) opportunities and programmes. That is why we have formed Penang STEM Sdn. Bhd, an umbrella organization consisting of 6 centres such as:

1. Penang Skill Development Centre (PSDC) which has been established 28 years ago
2. Penang Science Cluster (PSC)
3. Karpal Singh Penang Learning Centre (KSPLC)
4. Tech Dome Penang (TDP)
5. @CAT Penang (@CAT)
6. Penang Digital Library (PDL)

The 6 centres combined have over 250 STEM-related programmes. I would like to see these available, not only to the urban young, but also to the rural and to the ones neglected and left behind. STEM education has the power to open their minds to new career opportunities.

I expect to see Penang STEM playing a big role to help create human talent to drive and support the Digital Economy and the 4th Industrial Revolution.

This is the theme of Penang STEM's logo – to be involved in Industry 4.0 involving Big Data Analytics, Cloud Computing, robotics, artificial intelligence and Internet of Things (IoT).

Thank you.