4.5m Malaysians likely to lose jobs if they lack skills - Sivakumar

 

As many as 4.5 million Malaysians are likely to lose their jobs by 2030 if they do not improve their skills or attend reskilling and upskilling programmes with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).

Human Resources Minister V Sivakumar said this is based on the 2020 World Economic Forum warns that AI could cause a recession in the job market.

He said AI is already being used to automate tasks in various industries, including manufacturing, healthcare and customer service.

“The report stated that 50 per cent of workers will need to be retrained to remain employed in the next two years.

“With the advent of the Industrial Revolution 4.0, we urgently need to transform the national workforce into a skilled workforce to remain relevant.

“However, we are fortunate because the newly emerging jobs are work that can be combined with technology and the need to improve skills is not only for career advancement or change, but to stay in the job,” he said.

Sivakumar said this in his speech at the launch of the Industry Driven Talent Acceleration Programme (ID-TAP) 2023 at Selangor Human Resource Development Centre in Shah Alam today.

He said the ministry, through the Skill Development Fund Corporation in collaboration with Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad, created ID-TAP to improve skills and retrain 900 workers in the country based on industry needs.

For the initiative, Sivakumar said RM7.2 million was allocated for workers to be equipped with knowledge and skills required by industries such as mechatronics, electrical and electronic engineering, data analysis and information technology.

“Among the talent groups that are targeted are workers with work experience of five years or less,” he said.

He adds that of the 900 workers to be selected, approval has been given to 627 participants, with the most number from Kedah totalling 177, Selangor (88) and Negeri Sembilan (75).

Sivakumar said those interested in the programme could apply through the industry, their company or state skill development centres where several processes would be required at the training provider level.

- Bernama