Blamed for death note against Teresa Kok, MCA president says to leave him out of it, also says his BM not that badA general view of the student workshop at the Mechanical Engineering Faculty of the University Malaya campus in Kuala Lumpur, May 17, 2024. — Picture by Yusof Mat IsaKUALA LUMPUR, May 22 — Malaysia must start teaching STEM subjects in schools as early as possible to address the critical shortage of engineers and high-skilled labour in the country, several experts have said.
This shortage leads to delayed projects, increased costs, and higher wages. Consequently, it can hinder economic growth and lead to outsourcing or offshoring of engineering tasks, potentially resulting in domestic job losses and quality control challenges. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir visit an exhibition during the launch of the 2024 Malaysia Artificial Intelligence Nexus at World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur, May 10, 2024. — Picture by Yusof Mat Isa
At the 2024 Malaysia Artificial Intelligence Nexus programme, Anwar said that representatives of Nvidia, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Huawei and Ericsson all said that in terms of discipline, our new engineers and science graduates were quite good, but they were still lacking in terms of the skills, abilities and specialisation required.
He also pointed out that loose performance measurements in schools contribute to inaccurate data and affect the 60:40 policy, which aims to enrol 60 per cent of students in science and technical streams and 40 per cent in arts streams. Major Prebagaran Jayaraman , chairman of Chartered Management Institute noted that many SPM leavers and former engineers turn to the gig economy for better pay and less stress.
“A part-time learning opportunity is something many look for to upskill and reskill themselves. If we provide these opportunities, students will fill the jobs. Currently, many students are starting their own online businesses and are reluctant to continue their studies due to costs and lack of interest.
To drive interest in jobs related to STEM, Anwar has been pushing the importance of enhancing Technical and Vocational Education and Training programmes to address the engineer shortage. “The low enrolment in STEM A and STEM B packages forces higher institutions to accept students with a STEM C background into their STEM-based programmes. This mismatch means these students often struggle with STEM subjects, particularly Additional Mathematics. As a result, nearly 3,000 of the 60,000 university students majoring in STEM fields change their course each year.