KUALA LUMPUR: More than 310,000 new jobs are expected to be generated from approved manufacturing investments between 2022 and September last year, over 40% of them in the skilled and professional categories, says Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani.
The Investment, Trade and Industry Minister said a total of 3,677 manufacturing investment projects under the supervision of his ministry and the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (Mida) were approved during the period, involving investments worth RM450.5bil.
"These approved projects are expected to create 310,399 new job opportunities, of which 127,498, or 41.1%, are in management, professional, engineering, supervisory and skilled categories," he said in a parliamentary written reply on Wednesday (Feb 5).
He said 118,628 jobs, or 38.2%, are machine operator and assembly worker positions, while 14,504 (4.7%) are in sales, clerical and other roles.
General workers make up 49,769 jobs, or 16.0%, he said.
Johari added that of the approved projects, 2,718 manufacturing projects with approved investments totalling RM338.7bil have already been realised.
"These projects have created 228,112 jobs so far.
"Of the jobs created from realised projects, 92,365, or 40.5%, are in management, professional, engineering, supervisory and skilled categories, while 93,500 (41.0%) are machine operators and assembly workers," he said.
He said a further 10,735 positions (4.7%) are in sales, clerical and other categories, while 31,512 jobs, or 13.8%, are general workers.
Johari stressed that under the Madani Economy Framework, Malaysia’s investment strategy does not focus solely on the value of investments or the number of jobs created, but also places strong emphasis on job quality, income levels and overall well-being.
He said this approach is guided by the New Investment Policy, the National Investment Aspirations and the New Industrial Master Plan 2030, which prioritise high value-added, skills-intensive and technology-driven investments.
"Priority is given to high-growth and high-technology sectors such as electrical and electronics, aerospace, medical devices, the digital economy, and research and development activities," he said, adding that the target median salary for the manufacturing sector is RM4,510 by 2030.
Johari also said manufacturing licence approval criteria require at least 25% of total employment to be in management, technical and supervisory roles, or for projects to achieve a minimum value-added level of 40%.
On monitoring job quality, he said the ministry, through Mida, conducts compliance-based monitoring to ensure investors meet their commitments, including collaborating with relevant ministries and agencies on workforce development and skills enhancement initiatives such as the Special Taskforce-Talent Facilitation.
