PENANG FUTURE FOUNDATION 2023 AWARD PRESENTATION

SPEECH BY THE RIGHT HONOURABLE TUAN CHOW KON YEOW
CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG &
CHAIRMAN OF PENANG FUTURE FOUNDATION
SELECTION COMMITTEE

PENANG FUTURE FOUNDATION 2023 AWARD PRESENTATION
KOMTAR
14 MARCH 2024
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Members of the Penang Future Foundation Selection Committee:

Dato’ Seri Nazir Ariff

Dato’ Loo Lee Lian

Professor Emeritus Dato’ Dr. Lim Koon Ong

Representatives of the PFF 2023 cohort

Members of the media

Ladies and gentlemen

Good afternoon.

First and foremost, I would like to wish Selamat Berpuasa to our Muslim brothers and sisters. While the holy month of Ramadhan is observed by Muslims all over the world through a period of fasting and abstinence, it has also become a Malaysian societal norm transcending racial differences for many of us to enjoy a trip to the evening food bazaars or gather family and friends for an Iftar after a day of fasting.

And just like the swiftness of time that passes between sunrise and sunset, the Penang Future Foundation scholarship programme will enter its 10th year in 2024. Recognised as one of the Penang State Government’s initiatives in attracting and retaining talents to spearhead the State’s growth in the next 50 years of our continuing industrialisation journey, the Penang State Government remains committed in providing outstanding and deserving Malaysian students with financial support to pursue their tertiary education locally.

As Chairman of the PFF Selection Committee, I am pleased to highlight that 700 students have received the PFF scholarship awards covering undergraduate degrees in a diverse range of fields, namely Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Accountancy and Finance between 2015 and 2022. Following the recently completed 2023 Selection Process, an additional 43 students have been chosen to receive the Penang Scholar award and another 8 students selected for the Mutiara Scholar award. These two distinct scholarship awards are designed to encourage the academic high-flyers to maintain strong academic performance in the Penang Scholar category, and to help those from poor financial backgrounds in the Mutiara Scholar category.

Ladies and gentlemen,

I must emphasise that while Penang’s industrial journey started in 1972 with the famed 8 Samurais, Penang’s challenge in securing a bigger presence on the world’s business landscape in the next 50 years depends on what we are doing now. Beyond creating more industrial parks and increasing flow of investments and re-investments, human talent development is equally important and yet often overlooked. Now a burgeoning global crisis, fingers are pointing in all directions on the lack of available talents or the standard of talents that can match the industries’ demands.

I have heard arguments that the State Government must do more and more in providing a bottomless talent pool. Perhaps we can, but funding has never been an eternal fruit-bearing tree. Instead, I must acknowledge that PFF’s available fund has been steadily depleting with every cohort of awarded scholarships. Though we are immensely proud that 475 PFF scholars have graduated to date, I should also point out that save for a few, the rest of the 214 recipients who have completed their service bond and 254 scholars who are currently serving their service bond chose to work for multi-national corporations (MNCs) and small-medium enterprises (SMEs) in Penang.

On that note, I must implore for the generosity of key industry players in Penang to step forward and contribute towards ensuring that PFF remains a lifeline for gifted and deserving students. Though we have received significant contributions in the past from among others, NI and local property developer Hunza Group, surely there can be more financial support from Penang’s strong ensemble of more than 350 MNCs and 4000 SMEs. Unless there is enough support from all stakeholders, the upcoming online application window for the PFF 2024 Scholarship Award which tentatively opens on 15 July 2024, will regrettably be one of our very last few.

I have spoken long enough. We have four scholar representatives from the PFF 2023 award cohort with us today, and I now invite Beh Jia Liang to share a few words with us.

Thank you.