GIVING YOUTHS A GOOD HEADSTART
THE Government has repeatedly expressed its aspiration to prepare young Malaysians for the fourth Industrial Revolution with the aim of positioning the country among the top 20 nations by 2050.
In order to equip young people with the necessary skills and knowledge required for Malaysia’s future economic and social development, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) are crucial tools for productivity enhancement.
Last year, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak launched TVET Malaysia with five pillars to forge the TVET transformation towards establishing a workforce that will be able to compete globally.
This includes increasing the number of well-trained Malaysians from 28% to 35% by 2020, strengthening strategic PublicPrivate partnerships for better synergy in building skilled manpower and bringing all TVET institutes within the various ministries under TVET Malaysia.
Since 1964, the Youth and Sports Ministry has been offering TVET through its Youth and Sports Skills Training Institute (ILKBS) across the country with the goal of providing SPM school-leavers with practical, hands-on training to prepare them with requisite skills when they join the workforce.
Each year, ILKBS enrols about 10,000 students for January and July intakes.
“Through 22 skill-training institutes, the Ministry provides TVET that is instrumental in having skilled manpower.
“We offer various programmes in 13 technology fields such as automotive, electronics, mechanical, hospitality, aviation and information technology,” said Youth Skills Development Division director-general Dr Wasitah Mohd Yusof.
Under the ILKBS umbrella, there are eight Institut Kemahiran Tinggi Belia Negara (IKTBN), 13 Institut Kemahiran Belia Negara (IKBN) and one Akademi Kemahiran Belia Golf (AKBG).
IKTBN offers higher level programmes (Malaysian Skills Diploma and Malaysian Skills Advanced Diploma) as well as acts as a resource centre and publishes academic journals, while IKBN offers courses with Malaysian Skills Certificate Levels 1 to 3.
The learning weightage includes 30% theory and 70% practical while character-building is greatly emphasised to promote ethical, social and emotional development among students.
To do so, ILKBS has made the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award, or known locally as the Anugerah Remaja Perdana, a compulsory co-curricular activity to create more well-rounded graduates.
“The world’s leading youth achievement award plays a crucial role in their development outside the classroom as it requires them to develop skills, be physically active and make positive impact through community service,” Dr Wasitah added.
Additionally, the educators at the institutes are carefully chosen by the Public Services Commission of Malaysia to maintain high standards.
According to IKBN Pekan director Yusop Ibrahim, ILKBS ensures the teachers are constantly upskilled and upgrading themselves to provide students with quality education.
“We send them to industry attachment programmes for three to six months for hands-on experience in the field they teach in.
“Every year, they will also need to take part in the Teacher Training Enhancement Programme to stay relevant and informed about the skills needed in the market,” he said.
Success stories
Since the first IKBN was set up in Kuala Kubu Baru, Selangor, 54 years ago, more than 120,000 youths have graduated.
IKTBN Sepang, Selangor alumni Zakaria Ishat, 41, enrolled in Electronics Technology in 1996 after his SPM because going to university would have been a burden to his parents financially.
“My family was poor, and my three older brothers had already gone to universities. So I applied to IKTBN Sepang instead after reading about it in the newspaper,” said the sixth of nine siblings who met his wife at the institute.
Since graduating, his career has progressed successfully and he is now a maintenance/project senior manager of a multi-national company (MNC) manufacturing company.
Nilavannan Alaimohan, 28, now owns an electrical and telecommunication company with a staff of 30 and earns about RM60,000 per month.
“Due to my poor SPM results, I could not go to university. My uncle recommended that I take an Electrical Technology course since there was a demand for skilled workers.
“ILKBS has helped me with my entrepreneurial skills, and through the encouragement of my teachers at IKTBN Bukit Mertajam, I started my own company right after completing my course,” said Nilavannan.
Based in Bukit Mertajam, Penang, the company specialises in the complete installation of electrical services to commercial, industrial and public developments, and has expanded to Singapore.
On the other hand, IKTBN Alor Gajah, Melaka alumni Abdul Wahab Ismail, 30, who acquired entrepreneurial skills, now runs a catering business.
“I would recommend ILKBS because there are endless opportunities for us to choose from. We just need to enrol ourselves in the field we are passionate about.
“We don’t have to pay tuition fees and are given a monthly allowance by ILKBS as well as daily essentials such as food and uniform.
“This helps tremendously, especially students from poor families, as it will ease their burden,” he said.
Nurul Aida Hamishawal Ahmad, an IKBN Pekan, Pahang alumni, who wanted to become a religious lecturer initially, never thought she would enjoy learning about aircraft maintenance.
“I didn’t have any aviation background and had no idea what it was all about but I learnt along the way.
“Currently, I am working at CTRM Aero Composites. What we have learnt at IKBN is exactly what I am doing now.
“The environment at IKBN is much like the actual industry at CTRM,” she said, adding that her teachers ensured students thoroughly understood the subject.
Coincidentally, the 22-year-old has a twin who studied in AKBG and is now working at The Els Club in Desaru Coast, Johor.
Strategic collaborations with other industries like CTRM have allowed ILKBS students such as Nurul Aida to get jobs immediately after their course and practical training.
Building partnerships with local and international companies while improving curriculum were initiatives mooted by the Ministry to improve the marketability of graduates.
Its efforts saw a successful increase from 83% in 2014 to 93% as of December 2017.
For Nik Ridhwan Nik Mohd Nasir, 20, his hard work, self-motivation and outstanding character finally paid off when he was interviewed to be an Asia Pacific representative for a company based in Spain.
“They are interested in hiring me, but will first need to evaluate my performance during industrial training after I finish my course in June.
“If all goes well, they will then give me the confirmation letter to fly to Spain for training,” said the IKTBN Dusun Tua, Selangor student who is doing automotive spray painting.
The testimonials of these alumni speak volumes for the TVET they received and how it can lead to successful careers.
“In developed countries, TVET is one of the first options for students because it offers good career prospects. However, in Malaysia it is the opposite and seen as a last choice for students.
“A vocational education provides a good alternative platform for students to realise their potential,” said Dr Wasitah.
Moving forward
As the country prepares for Industrial Revolution 4.0, TVET plays a crucial role in equipping young Malaysians as they embrace the future.
ILKBS is rolling out initiatives to stay relevant, increase students’ marketability and produce skilled workers to meet job demands brought by Industry 4.0 like automation, digitisation and data collection.
Among its efforts is a partnership between the Ministry and Microsoft Malaysia to introduce world-class technology in its institutes that will benefit some 10,000 students, to be done in stages.
Called Digital ILKBS, the initiative serves to equip both students and teachers with tools to improve learning processes with the aim of developing future-ready human capital in response to the changing digital landscape.
As of last December, a total of 36 Memoranda of Understanding were signed between the Ministry and strategic partners such as Petronas, Samsung, Sunway Group, Gamuda Group and DRB Hicom for collaborations to increase the quality of work and marketability of ILKBS graduates in various fields.
IKLBS’ short-term plans with its partners include bootcamps, a form of intensive and effective training with guaranteed job opportunities at the end of the sessions.
This year, 15 companies will be working together with the Ministry on the bootcamp and about 465 job opportunities will be offered to students after the training.
The government has allocated over RM2.3mil to run the programme.
ILKBS continues to strive in equipping young Malaysians with hard and soft skills so they can be more competitive, have jobs and stable incomes, and eventually, a good standard of living.
To know more about ILKBS, visit http://kemahiran.kbs.gov.my/en/