Latest news with #DEMP
The Star
3 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Skills, services for senior folk to build silver economy
Chow (holding book) at the opening of the Penang Digital Economy Summit 2025 at G Hotel Gurney. — Photos: LIM BENG TATT/The Star Penang unveils five-year digital master plan to empower ageing workforce PENANG is set to pioneer a new approach to its ageing population, aiming to build a 'silver economy' where senior citizens remain active in the workforce through digital empowerment. This forward-thinking strategy is the cornerstone of the state's five-year Digital Economy Master Plan (DEMP) 2025-2030. Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow unveiled the plan, which provides a clear roadmap for equipping mature workers with accessible and age-friendly digital tools, skills and services. The initiative is particularly timely, as it aligns with a growing national debate over raising the mandatory retirement age from 60 to 65. The Federal Government is currently studying this proposal, with Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, saying that it was a 'waste' to lose productive workers at 60. Unveiling the master plan at the Penang Digital Economy Summit 2025, Chow explained that the new roadmap was designed to make Penang a digital-first state. This will be a collaborative effort involving state and federal agencies, government-linked companies and industry leaders. Chow (holding book) at the opening of the Penang Digital Economy Summit 2025 at G Hotel Gurney. — Photos: LIM BENG TATT/The Star The plan is built on four core pillars – digital government, digital economy, digital society and digital foundation – each with strategic initiatives to empower Penang's businesses, communities and individuals. Chow also emphasised the need for Penang to diversify its economy in a volatile global landscape, citing the reassertion of 'America First' policies and the use of tariffs as geopolitical tools. The DEMP, he said, was a vital tool to ensure that the state was not overly reliant on any single sector or global power. The plan also aligns with the Penang2030 vision and 13th Malaysia Plan's focus on inclusivity and readiness for an ageing population. The DEMP builds upon the success of the previous Digital Transformation Master Plan (DTMP) 2021-2023, which successfully completed or initiated over 60% of its 21 initiatives. These included the #Dah Digital programme, which boosted digital literacy for 18,500 residents, and Penang Connectivity Master Plan, which improved Internet access across the state. The prior plan also saw the establishment of Digital Penang as a hub for data, innovation and smart governance. The recent summit, a collaborative event organised by Digital Penang and supported by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), attracted some 300 participants from over 50 corporate and public sector organisations. Digital Penang chief executive officer (CEO) Ng Kwang Ming said the event was designed to strengthen Penang's role as a digital economy hub by fostering cross-sector collaboration. Key sessions focused on investment opportunities, start-up growth, education and social impact initiatives aimed at enhancing community services and non-governmental organisation outreach through digital accessibility. The summit, free and open to the public, also featured an exhibition and panel sessions. Present were prominent figures like the chief executive officers of MDEC Anuar Fariz Fadzil, InvestPenang's Datuk Loo Lee Lian and Cradle Fund Group's Norman Matthieu Vanhaecke.
The Star
09-08-2025
- Business
- The Star
Penang targets RM156bil GDP by 2030 under Digital Economy Master Plan
GEORGE TOWN: Increasing Penang's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contribution from RM116bil in 2023 to RM156bil by 2030 is among the key success metrics under the newly launched Digital Economy Master Plan (DEMP) 2025-2030. Penang infrastructure, transport and digital committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said the strategic plan aims to raise the digital economy's contribution to 35% of Penang's GDP by 2030, while targeting digital investments of up to RM20 billion, including in integrated circuit design and RM130bil in advanced semiconductor manufacturing. He said the plan also outlines several socio-economic targets, including increasing the state's median household income by approximately 17% to RM7,700 by 2030, creating 50,000 new digital jobs and upskilling 30% of the workforce. "The Penang DEMP 2025-2030 is not just a document, it is a blueprint for action, a call to build a connected, competitive and inclusive digital Penang. "We aim to transform civil service delivery, boost the number of digital-ready businesses and digitally savvy workforce, attract greater digital investment into our economic ecosystems, and make Penang a testbed and hub for emerging and frontier technologies," he said at the launch of DEMP 2025-2030 at the Penang Digital Economy Summit (PDES) 2025 here on Saturday (Aug 9). Other goals include reducing energy intensity by 25% and increase renewable energy usage to 10% by the end of the plan period. Zairil noted that the DEMP is structured around four strategic pillars which is Digital Government, Digital Economy, Digital Society and Digital Foundation, supported by 16 initiatives to ensure Penang can achieve its vision, mission and strategic goals. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, who officiated the launch, said the DEMP 2025-2030 serves as a long-term strategic roadmap aimed at positioning Penang as a digital-first economy focused on innovation, infrastructure, talent development and inclusive digital access. He emphasised that the plan lays out clear strategies to ensure that mature workers and senior citizens are empowered through digital tools, skilling programmes and services that are accessible and age-friendly, "With the recent tabling of the 13th Malaysia Plan, the national agenda is shifting towards a more inclusive, high-tech and aging-resilient economy. Here in Penang, we are responding in kind. "The digital economy plays a vital role in our economic resilience, contributing significantly to our services sector, which adds up to 50% of the state's GDP annually. It is a clear signal that we are on the right path," he added. Chow also pointed out that under the previous Digital Transformation Master Plan (DTMP) 1.0 from 2021 to 2023, more than 60% of the 21 outlined initiatives were either completed or currently ongoing, with strong alignment to the state's strategic goals. DEMP 2025-2030 represents a long-term commitment to advancing Penang's digital ecosystem and fostering collaborative efforts between the state and federal governments, government-linked companies, industry players and technology leaders. – Bernama
The Sun
09-08-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Penang aims for RM156 bln GDP by 2030 with digital economy plan
GEORGE TOWN: Penang aims to boost its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from RM116 billion in 2023 to RM156 billion by 2030 under the newly launched Digital Economy Master Plan (DEMP) 2025-2030. State Infrastructure, Transport and Digital Committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said the plan targets raising the digital economy's contribution to 35 per cent of Penang's GDP by 2030. The state also aims to attract RM20 billion in digital investments, including in integrated circuit design, and RM130 billion in advanced semiconductor manufacturing. Zairil added that the plan includes socio-economic goals such as increasing median household income by 17 per cent to RM7,700 by 2030. It also seeks to create 50,000 new digital jobs and upskill 30 per cent of the workforce. 'The Penang DEMP 2025-2030 is not just a document, it is a blueprint for action, a call to build a connected, competitive and inclusive digital Penang,' he said. The plan aims to transform civil service delivery, increase digital-ready businesses, and position Penang as a hub for emerging technologies. Other targets include reducing energy intensity by 25 per cent and increasing renewable energy usage to 10 per cent by 2030. Zairil noted that the DEMP is structured around four strategic pillars: Digital Government, Digital Economy, Digital Society, and Digital Foundation. These pillars are supported by 16 initiatives to ensure Penang achieves its vision and strategic goals. Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the DEMP serves as a long-term roadmap to position Penang as a digital-first economy. He emphasised the plan's focus on innovation, infrastructure, talent development, and inclusive digital access. 'The digital economy plays a vital role in our economic resilience, contributing significantly to our services sector, which adds up to 50 per cent of the state's GDP annually,' Chow said. He added that the plan includes strategies to empower mature workers and senior citizens through accessible digital tools and skilling programmes. Chow also highlighted the success of the previous Digital Transformation Master Plan (DTMP) 1.0, with over 60 per cent of initiatives completed or ongoing. The DEMP 2025-2030 represents a commitment to advancing Penang's digital ecosystem through collaboration between state and federal governments, industry players, and technology leaders. - Bernama
Al Arabiya
29-06-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Turkish Police Detain Over 50 People in Crackdown on Istanbul Pride March
Turkish authorities detained over 50 people attempting to march for Istanbul Pride on Sunday as part of its decade-long crackdown on the event. A heavy police presence in hot spots around the city prevented significant gathering, and the organization had to change the gathering location multiple times. Yıldız Tar, editor-in-chief of the LGBTQ+ rights organization and the journal Kaos GL, wrote on X that 54 people were detained at Istanbul Pride, including six lawyers. As of Sunday evening, seven had been released, and 47 were still in detention. The Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions of Turkey, or DISK, announced that at least three journalists were among the detained. 'The palace regime will not be able to stay in power by demonizing the LGBTQ+ community,' said Kezban Konukçu, Member of Parliament from the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party, or DEM, who participated in the event. Once boasting tens of thousands of participants, Istanbul Pride has been banned since 2015 as the religious conservative Justice and Development Party began playing up to the more conservative elements of its base.
