MELAKA: Malaysia has become the first country in the Asean region to offer accreditation recognition for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), says Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The Deputy Prime Minister said that Asean member states had reached a consensus on this recognition during a recent meeting involving ministers and senior officials.
“We successfully reached an agreement, and Malaysia will take the lead as the first nation to offer this form of accreditation for acceptance throughout Asean,” he said following his keynote address at the Asean TVET Council 4th Regional Policy Dialogue (ATC 4th RPD) here on Wednesday (June 11).
Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Yusoh, Deputy Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Rubiah Wang, as well as representatives from Asean, Germany and Australia were also present.
Ahmad Zahid stated that the dialogue focuses on establishing an Asean-wide ecosystem that prioritises TVET in the region’s future, with the Asean TVET Council tasked with connecting policies, aligning standards, and promoting shared progress.
Earlier in his speech, he urged Asean to bridge the skills gap by promoting industry-driven, demand-based training programmes.
He said it was essential to align the regional talent pipeline with the needs of factories, plantations and emerging green industries.
He said that industries must co-develop training modules, share apprenticeship opportunities and open up cross-border job prospects for this to be achieved.
"Thirdly, we must develop TVET as a comprehensive ecosystem by aligning education, industry, infrastructure, certification and digital access, all guided by data and coordinated through the ATC,” he “We propose the formalisation of Malaysia as the Asean TVET Certification and Excellence Hub and we look forward to the full support of all member states in making this a shared regional legacy,” he said.
"In this global race for relevance, skills are the new currency. Malaysia is not only championing skills development but also laying the foundation for Asean to emerge as a TVET powerhouse," he said.
