NTW 2025 Records Over Two Million Participants
KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 (Bernama) -- The 2025 National Training Week (NTW), held to promote greater participation in skills training among Malaysians, has recorded over two million participants, exceeding its initial one million target.
Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong said the third edition of NTW offered more than 71,000 free courses nationwide, conducted physically, online and in hybrid formats, from today until June 21.
'More than 41 per cent of the courses are related to Industry 4.0. To improve the people's skills in this area, the Human Resources Ministry (KESUMA) collaborated with the Ministry of Education (MOE) to implement the AI-4-Educators programme from April 7 to June 12.
'This is to train nearly 400,000 educators in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) for teaching techniques, skills and related issues such as ethics, so that frontliners in our human capital development sector are equipped with the knowledge and skills to face the challenges of the AI era,' he said when speaking at the NTW ceremony at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium here today.
The AI-4-Educators programme, comprising five self-training modules covering the use of AI in teaching, accessibility and ethics, has been recognised by the Malaysia Book of Records for recording the largest participation of educators in an AI training programme.
Sim said the government had allocated about RM10 billion for skills development, of which 30 per cent came from levies imposed on private companies to train their employees.
'KESUMA is aware that with such a large financial allocation, the strategy must be aligned with current needs so that the people can benefit from it. Therefore, last year we introduced the MyMahir portal, which helps not only government agencies and private companies but also individuals to make informed decisions on skills development plans based on economic criteria.
'In this first year, KESUMA found that our trainees earned an average salary that was 12 per cent higher than the general market average. This programme will be expanded more aggressively so that more workers benefit from the MADANI Government's investment in skills development,' he said.
Meanwhile, the Human Resource Development Corporation (HRD Corp), in a statement, said that among the popular courses during NTW 2025 were Neurodiversity Virtual Training, Cyber Security Threat Management (CSTM), ChatGPT Malaysia Community: Malaysia's Premier AI Learning Platform, Drone Flying Skills for New Pilots, Tax Planning for Individuals 2025, and Generative AI For Everyone.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Borneo Post
29 minutes ago
- Borneo Post
PM Anwar: GST not suitable now, would burden the poor
Anwar speaking at the closing of the Perak MADANI Rakyat Programme (PMR) 2025 here today. – Bernama photo LUMUT (June 15): The government is not ready to reintroduce the Goods and Services Tax (GST) as it would affect all segments of society, particularly the poor, said Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. The Prime Minister said GST is a broad-based tax that would be applied uniformly to all consumers, regardless of income, including fishermen, smallholders, or street cleaners. 'GST taxes everybody. While it is efficient and straightforward, just six per cent across the board, I must ask, if everyone has to pay six per cent, why should the poor and the unemployed be taxed as well?' he said when closing the Perak MADANI Rakyat Programme (PMR) 2025 here today. Anwar said that although the opposition has suggested GST as a better option, the government has chosen to postpone its implementation to avoid burdening the people, who are still struggling with the rising cost of living. 'That's why we say we're not ready for GST. If, one day, the economy improves and the minimum wage reaches RM4,000 or more, then by all means, implement GST. But for now, I'm calling for it to be postponed, don't turn it into a political issue,' he said. Anwar said the government is retaining the Sales and Services Tax (SST), which is more targeted in nature, particularly on imported luxury items such as avocados and cod, products typically consumed by high-income earners. 'Local bananas are not taxed, but expensive imported fruits like avocados, usually consumed by those in the high-income group, should come with a slightly higher price. The same goes for cod, which is also imported and costly, so we tax it,' he said. As such, he emphasised that the tax revenue collected from these imported and high-end goods could be used to develop infrastructure that benefits the people, such as hospitals, schools, and the national defence system. However, Anwar said the tax revenue collected by the government is not solely meant to cover the country's operating expenditure, but also to fund various development and welfare initiatives that directly benefit the people. According to the Prime Minister, although there are weaknesses in the SST system, the government remains open to reviewing and enhancing it comprehensively in the nation's best interest. – Bernama anwar ibrahim economy GST Tax revenue
Free Malaysia Today
34 minutes ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Microsoft reaffirms commitment to M'sia amid global data centre pullbacks
As of May, more than 400,000 Malaysians have received AI training under the initiative under Microsoft's AI for Malaysia's Future (AIForMYFuture) initiative, according to the tech giant. (AFP pic) PETALING JAYA : Microsoft has reaffirmed its commitment to a RM10.5 billion investment in cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure in Malaysia, including the development of hyperscale data centres in the Klang Valley. A spokesperson for Microsoft Malaysia told FMT the tech giant is closely monitoring the ongoing uncertainty following US President Donald Trump's announcement of sweeping tariffs in April, which unsettled stock and currency markets before a 90-day pause was declared a week later. 'Microsoft remains committed to our investment in Malaysia to accelerate the nation's AI and cloud adoption. As a company, the tariff is something we are watching, but we don't have anything to share right now,' it said. Citing people familiar with the situation, Bloomberg reported in April that Microsoft had either halted talks for, or delayed the development of, data centre projects in Indonesia, the UK and Australia, as well as Illinois, North Dakota and Wisconsin in the US. Microsoft acknowledged making changes to its data centre plans at the time, saying the move reflected the flexibility of the company's strategy and aligned with its goal of ensuring it has 'sufficient infrastructure in the right places'. Last month, Microsoft announced the general availability of the Malaysia West cloud region in Greater Kuala Lumpur comprising three availability zones aimed at offering low-latency connections and a highly resilient infrastructure, including Azure and Microsoft 365. Additionally, Microsoft Malaysia managing director Laurence Si previously said the company is also investing in talent development through its 'AI for Malaysia's Future' (AIForMYFuture) initiative, which aims to equip 800,000 Malaysians with AI skills by the end of 2025. In an interview with FMT, Microsoft Malaysia's legal and government affairs director Adilah Junid revealed that, as of May, more than 400,000 Malaysians have received AI training under the initiative. She also encouraged participation in the free AIForMYFuture initiative via Microsoft's AI Skills Navigator website, and the monthly Microsoft AI Teach programmes held nationwide at local educational institutions and National Information Dissemination Centres. 'Microsoft relies heavily on local partners such as Biji-Biji, HRD Corp, Perkeso, Pepper Labs, and the International Women's Federation of Commerce and Industry Malaysia. 'They are really the ones to have networks within the community and society, enabling us to make this opportunity as widely accessible as possible,' said Adilah. Addressing concerns about sustainability, particularly the high water usage of data centres for cooling, she said Microsoft is constantly exploring innovative solutions to operate more sustainably. 'We were part of the consultations with the digital ministry's guidelines for sustainable data centres. We also work with authorities to ensure that our water and energy usage metrics are aligned,' said Adilah.
Barnama
an hour ago
- Barnama
Samling Group Achieves Major Gains In Eucalyptus Plantation Yields
BINTULU, June 15 (Bernama) -- Sarawak-based timber company, Samling Group, has achieved significant success with its tissue culture-derived Eucalyptus hybrid plantations, demonstrating potential to enhance both productivity and sustainability. This success was revealed during a technical briefing by the company to the Forest Department Sarawak (FDS) recently, where the hybrid plantations have demonstrated over 50 per cent higher Mean Annual Increment (MAI) when compared to traditional seed-derived plantations. 'Looking ahead, Samling targets the production of 1.7 to 2.4 million plantlets in 2025/2026, with plans to scale up laboratory capacity to produce eight million plantlets annually, and eventually up to 25 million plantlets per year,' FDS said in a statement today.
