HRDF's initiatives to reduce dependency on foreign workers, and upskill locals

The Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) has launched its Human Capital Strategic Initiatives on 20 March 2017. Aimed at contributing towards the national human capital agenda of creating a 35% skilled Malaysian workforce by the year 2020, human resources minister Dato’ Sri Richard Riot Anak Jaem launched the four initiatives during the event held at Hilton Kuala Lumpur.

1. 1Malaysia Outplacement Centre (1MOC)
2. Train and Replace Programme (T&R)
3. Graduates ENhancEment pRogrAmme for Employability (GENERATE)
4. Rural Accelerated Industrial Skill For Employment (RAISE)

The initiatives will be funded via the 30% HRDF pool fund, government allocation as well as private partnerships, and will run on a continuous basis based on industry requirements.

Along with existing programmes by HRDF, these will collectively serve several objectives:

• To reduce Malaysia’s dependency on foreign workers in semi-skilled and skilled areas of work.
• To reduce the nation’s unemployment rate and related social ills.
• To increase the local household income as well as the national income per capita.
• To produce skilled Malaysian workers for employers with businesses in the country. In turn, this will simultaneously increase company productivity and wages earned by Malaysians.

Nothing that this is where strategic agency partners such as the HRDF, which is under the purview of the Ministry of Human Resources Malaysia, comes into action; Riot said: “Investments in both education and re-skilling and up-skilling of the local talent are pivotal towards improving social mobility and the wellbeing of the Rakyat, as a whole.”

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Meanwhile, HRDF chief executive Dato’ C.M. Vignaesvaran Jeyandran commented in his opening address: “It is our local talent who will provide us with a strong platform to sustain the rapid growth of the economy and enhance our global competitiveness.”

He added that HRDF will continue its mandate of catalysing the development of a competent Malaysian workforce that is effective, efficient, productive and innovative - helping to the country to achieve its end goal of becoming an advanced and inclusive nation by the 2020.

Currently 17,585 HRDF-registered employers, and nearly two million employees, from the manufacturing, services and mining and quarrying sectors are benefitting from the organisation’s initiatives.

These numbers are set to rise when the expansion of the Pembangunan Sumber Manusia Berhad (PSMB) Act 2001 comes into effect on 1 April 2017.

Photo / Provided