Malaysia aspires to host Asean Year of Skills 2025

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia aspires to host the Asean Year of Skills 2025 in collaboration with the International Labour Organisation (ILO), says Steven Sim Chee Keong.

The Human Resources Minister said this would allow the ministry, its departments, and agencies, such as the Human Resource Development Corporation (HRD Corp), to lead various initiatives to enhance the skills and knowledge of Asean's workforce.

"We will be honoured to collaborate with the ILO and all Asean leaders in achieving this aspiration through the Asean Year of Skills 2025.

"I am confident that, through the identified programmes, we can facilitate the exchange of knowledge and sharing of best practices to improve the expertise and productivity of our workforce.

"In addition, we can also forge stronger collaboration and partnerships among member countries in implementing long-term strategies towards the development of human capital,” he said in a statement on Friday (June 14).

Sim said this at the joint discussion session between Asean leaders, including from Brunei, Singapore, Indonesia, Laos, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia, in Geneva on Friday,

The Asean Year of Skills 2025 will include various programmes and initiatives across Southeast Asia, including the National Human Capital Conference & Exhibition (NHCCE), the HRD Corp's annual flagship event that brings together the best industry captains from around the world to discuss challenges and opportunities in human capital development.

For this year and 2025, the NHCCE will focus on key priorities in the future of work for the Asean region.

Sim said the event's hosting was timely given Malaysia's upcoming role as the Asean Chair next year. In this role, Malaysia will focus on enhancing regional integration by fostering seamless trade, deeper economic cooperation, and a more interconnected region.

It will also encourage investment into the Asean workforce by prioritising capacity building, education and skills development for a future-ready workforce, with a specific focus on emerging fields like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and semiconductor technologies.

Meanwhile, Srinivas Reddy, the ILO chief of Skills and Employability, who was also present at the discussion, said Malaysia had made excellent progress in its efforts to promote lifelong learning and training among its people.

He is also confident that the initiative would have a positive impact and succeed in driving the skills development agenda for the Asean region. He will also share his experience in organising the European Year of Skills in 2023 and 2024.

The engagement is part of Sim's four-day visit to Geneva, which included Malaysia’s ratification of ILO’s Convention on Occupational Safety and Health 1981 (Convention 155) and attending the 112th International Labour Conference. – Bernama