State committed to setting up digital village — Len Talif
KUCHING: The Sarawak government is committed to establishing a digital village with fully- equipped infrastructure to enable youths to tap into e- commerce and become entrepreneurs with digital savvy.
“A total of RM1 billion was allocated to ensure that the infrastructure can support the demand for this technology. Graduates should take this opportunity and become successful entrepreneurs in the near future,” said Assistant Minister of Urban Planning, Land Administration and Environment Datu Len Talif Salleh.
He was speaking at the graduation ceremony of Institut Kemahiran Mara (IKM) Kuching yesterday, held at the old State Legislative Assembly ( DUN) building.
He said that Majlis Amanah Rakyat ( Mara) through their institutions produced much of the country’s workforce in critical fields.
“This effort must continue and be strengthened to create a globally competent workforce. Today’s graduates must be ready to face the extreme challenges of the future to meet the expectations of the country’s leadership in this transformation era.”
Len added that he wants to see graduates evolve from job seekers to job creators.
“In other words, IKM Kuching graduates will no longer depend on government or private sector jobs, but instead create their own based on their own skills.”
Also present were IKM Kuching director Mhd Yatim Hassan and Mara Skills and Technical Section director Mahzan Teh.
A total of RM1 billion was allocated to ensure that the infrastructure can support the demand for this technology. Graduates should take this opportunity and become successful entrepreneurs in the near future.
In his speech, Mhd Yatim said that IKM Kuching students showed an improvement in performance with a graduation rate of 99.36 per cent for 2016, an increase from 2015’s 98.81 per cent.
“This is also due to the various programmes that focus on development of soft skills, academic intervention and spirituality all through their education at IKM Kuching.”
A total of 315 students graduated from the automotive, electrical and mechanical clusters. They come from both the January– June 2016 session and the July–December 2016 session.
Muhammad Shabirin Aidie from Pusa was named the best graduate in the January– June 2016 session. He completed his certificate in Automotive Engineering Technology.
Meanwhile, Mas Eizwani Spary from the July– December 2016 session completed her certificate in Electrical (Domestic and Industry) Engineering Technology. She is from Kuching.
Both picked up various academic awards and were active in co-curricular activities in their time with IKM Kuching.
IKM Kuching offers six fulltime certificate programmes and one diploma programme. Since its establishment in 1984, it has seen 8,553 graduates entering the workforce, continuing their education or becoming entrepreneurs.
Datu Len Talif Salleh, Assistant Minister of Urban Planning, Land Administration and Environment