Brain drain: One million Malaysians working overseas

There is a need to reduce the gap between university approaches and industry needs, says expert.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has to find ways to check brain drain to its advantage as it is a global phenomenon currently, says the man tasked with wooing Malaysian professionals working overseas back to the country.

“This is not something that we need to be faulted. It happens, particularly in middle-income countries like Malaysia where people have the means and incentives to migrate,” said Talent Corporation Malaysia Bhd (TalentCorp) chief executive officer Johan Mahmood Merican.

According to a World Bank report, Malaysians residing and working overseas touched one million last year, over half of the diaspora and brain drain were hosted in Singapore, followed by Australia, Brunei, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and New Zealand.

The ways to optimise Malaysians living abroad are use them as advisers to help Malaysian businesses to expand into new market and help attract investments to Malaysia, said Johan after the “21st Century Corporation: Driving Sustainable Leadership and Innovation breakfast forum here today.

On Malaysia’s ambition to become a high-income nation, he said, the country should have a sustainable pipeline of leaders and innovation labs for intensive knowledge.

“We cannot be merely a manufacturing base. We need to talk about innovation and leadership,” he said, adding that there was a need to reduce the gap between university approaches and industry needs.

Johan said there has been a difference in purposes between the academic world and industries as universities were focusing to educate students based on foundations and theories but industries want them to get ready for the work field.

He said the hands-on experience was a vital part in the process to build high quality leaders instead of mentorship and formal training.

Johan said the government was already taking measures to address the gap between universities and industries, and the Higher Education Ministry was moving forward to prepare the education side to be relevant to the industrial needs.

- Bernama