Sabah aims to boost STEM to ensure youth secure jobs in future


KOTA KINABALU: Sabah aims to meet its target of getting 42% of its students taking up science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects by 2025 to enable the younger generation to secure jobs in future.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor (pic) said the level of preparedness among the young on career opportunities were among the areas of priority for the state government amid the emerging challenges at the global stage.

Hajiji said it was projected that by 2027, 69 million new jobs related to STEM will be created. At the same time, 83 million existing jobs will be phased out, he added.“Various science enculturation efforts have also been implemented with the objective of raising students’ interests in STEM subjects and subsequently leading them to choose a career path in the field,” he said yesterday.

Hajiji said these efforts involved collaboration with strategic partners from the state and federal as well as domestic and foreign agencies.

“With the best education including mastering science, technology and innovation, we are able to change people’s quality of life, which will ultimately contribute to the success of the country, particularly in Sabah,” he said.

Hajiji said this in his speech, delivered by Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan during the opening of the Keningau Science Centre in the Keningau interior district. He said Sabah’s present enrolment rate of students in STEM subjects stood at 28%.“This is the second lowest in the national ranking,” he said.

This enrolment problem, he added, was one of the grassroots issues that needed to be resolved.

“With the momentum of the programmes by the government and the support of the community including parents, Sabah is expected to reach the 42% enrolment rate target by 2025.

“This effort is in line with the state government’s commitment to provide the best education to the people, especially in relation to STEM, in order to produce quality human capital,” Hajiji said, adding that it was also in tandem with the state’s Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) development plan.

Touching on the Keningau Science Centre located at the Sabah State Library Keningau Branch, the Chief Minister said it was built at a cost of RM3mil through allocations under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP).

He said that it was not merely a building but symbolises the tenacity and creativity in teaching science through an unconventional approach.“I hope this will spark interest among students and lead them into STEM,” he said of the government’s effort to provide equal learning opportunities for all.

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