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Human Resource Development Supported by Eleventh Malaysia Plan “Anchoring Growth on People”

Prime Minister Najib Razab has recently released the eleventh development plan of Malaysia on May 21, 2015, with a focus on developing human capital of Malaysians. As 60 percent of the 1.5 million newly created jobs under the Plan will require Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) skills, Malaysia needs to increase the TVET enrollment from 164,000 in 2013 to 225,000 students by 2020 and ensure that the graduates will meet employers’ requirements.

Besides quantity and quality of graduates, managing public and private education providers is another concern of the Malaysian government. There are currently seven ministries and agencies involved in providing TVET, including Ministries of Education, Higher Education, Human Resources and Development, and Youth and Sports. In addition, there are a great number of state service providers as well as public and private institutions in Malaysia.

Given such a complex system of TVET institutions, the government aims to consolidate the governance system for both public and private education providers. In particular, the two accreditation agencies, the Malaysian Qualification Agency (MQA) and the Department of Skills Development (DSD), will be unified to create one qualification system adopted by both agencies. Similarly, the rating systems for public and private institutions will be harmonized under the new development plan. By strengthening the governance of training providers, the government hopes to improve quality control of these institutions. In terms of enhancing the delivery of TVET programs, the government and TVET institutions will design curricula for specific industries.

How will foreign investors benefit from Malaysia’s human capital development policies?

In recent years, TVET in Malaysia has not been a mainstream education option for students, but this is changing. The Plan is rebranding and improving the sector’s profile, allowing students to consider and choose TVET as a career pathway. Students after participating in TVET programs should be well-informed of available opportunities and better prepared to satisfy industry demand.

Under this new 2016-2020 plan, public and private training providers must ensure to meet quality standards, but they would be able to participate in curriculum design and cooperate with other industries to recruit students and support graduates during the job placement process. The ultimate goal of the initiatives on TVET is to enhance graduate employability and ensure that there is enough supply for demands of the industry.

Malaysia’s well-educated, productive, and often multilingual workforce help make it a favored investment destination. Malaysia aims to enhance human capital over the next five years, and one of its objectives of enhancing its human capital is to raise labor productivity from RM77,100 to RM92,000 per worker. With a new development plan that prioritizes vocational and industrial training for young Malaysians, human resources in the country will continue to be one of its greatest assets.