School leavers, undergraduates must be employable – Yussof

SIPITANG: School leavers and higher learning institution undergraduates must ensure they are employable upon graduation.

State Education and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Yussof Yacob said there was a high number of unemployed graduates chiefly due to their qualifications not being in high demand by the various industrial sectors.

“School leavers with good qualification especially must know the demand of the industrial sectors before pursuing tertiary education, so that they are employable after graduation from higher learning institutions,” he told Labuan reporters after the presentation of Ritz Supplier Staff Outstanding Performance incentive, here yesterday.

Dr Yussof also urged industrial players and corporate sectors to also help the government in reducing the unemployment rate among graduates by having collaborations and memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with higher learning institutions or skills institutions on the occupation in demand.

“I have proposed industrial players including Ritz Supplier Sdn Bhd, being a SabahBumiputera registered company involved in the oil and gas-related industries to have collaboration with skills institutes for future employment for local graduates,” he said.

Dr Yussof said, as Sipitang was moving towards becoming an industrialised region, the demand for skilled workforce be they in the oil and gas, timber, fisheries and tourism sectors is growing.

“My ministry is also looking at more entrepreneurial development programmes introduced in the higher learning institution in the state, as this is one way of producing knowledgeable graduates in business,” Dr Yussof said.

He said only 50 per cent of school leavers with Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) qualification in Sabah or some 22,000, pursued tertiary education, while the remaining remained idle, either unemployed or living in villages. - Bernama