Towards a better future: Fadillah (centre) visiting exhibition booths at the Putrajaya Festival of Ideas at Putrajaya International Convention Centre. With him is Higher Education Minister Dr Zambry Abd Kadir (second from left). — Bernama
PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia is repositioning Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) as a pathway of first choice and a launchpad for innovation and entrepreneurship, says Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.
The Deputy Prime Minister said at the same time, the country is reimagining education as a lifelong journey through micro-credentials, digital learning pathways and the TVET excellence framework.
“Malaysia’s journey in education reform is guided by a simple conviction; nation-building begins with mind-building,” he said.
Fadillah also called for a New Global Compact for Education to equip humanity not just to survive the future, but to shape it with wisdom, empathy and courage.
He said the call reflects Malaysia’s belief that education must go beyond knowledge transfer and become a force that strengthens human character and global cooperation.
Malaysia is also positioning higher education as a bridge for peace and cooperation, connecting the Global North and South through partnerships that promote research, student mobility and mutual understanding, he said.
Fadillah said to move beyond 2030, nations must shift from aspiration to action, from silos to solidarity, and from access to agency, ensuring that every learner becomes an architect of solutions, not just a recipient of knowledge.
“Education is more than an investment in human capital; it is an investment in human character,” Fadillah said the Putrajaya Festival of Ideas, Bernama reported.
He said the event served as a platform to advance education for a resilient and sustainable future, noting that resilience must be built through education that empowers and adapts to change.
“It is through education that we nurture both intellect and integrity, the twin pillars of enduring strength,” he said.
Fadillah said the world is experiencing an era of unprecedented technological transformation driven by artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and quantum innovation, which are redefining economies, reshaping labour and reimagining the very act of learning.
In Malaysia, he said the government is embedding AI literacy and digital fluency across the education system to ensure learners become masters of technology, not servants to it, with a human-centred digital transition guided by ethics, equity and empathy.
