KOTA KINABALU: Sabah continues to prioritise human capital development, with RM164.01mil allocated for this purpose under the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), says Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
"Skills development and youth empowerment will be strengthened through the expansion of scholarships and education assistance," the Chief Minister said here on Thursday (March 5).
In his speech at the opening of a teachers' training programme for the SMJ Robotics Competition, he said various programmes have been drawn up to help Sabahan youths achieve progress and excellence.
State Education, Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk James Ratib delivered his speech.
Among the priority areas are the empowerment of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), the strengthening of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, agricultural training and digital technology, with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI) literacy., Hajiji added
"The state government continuously supports efforts to expand access to quality education in a broader, more inclusive manner, particularly initiatives that elevate STEM and innovation as a learning culture in schools.
"We want to ensure programmes like this are implemented in an orderly and systematic manner through collaboration with education authorities, schools, communities and strategic partners," he said.
This is so that teachers receive the necessary support and students can enjoy meaningful learning experiences, he said, noting the significance of this teachers' training programme.
Through it, he said, students would be better prepared to understand technology, build confidence and produce useful innovations when their teachers are empowered with the right skills and tools.
"This programme does not merely introduce robotics as an additional activity, but adopts a more structured approach through an implementation model in schools.
"This includes minimum infrastructure requirements, the use of robotics kits, learning platforms, as well as train-the-trainer methods to ensure effective implementation," Hajiji added.
