IPOH: The government is currently focusing on developing technology skills among those aged 18 to 40, with no specific programmes yet in place to expose younger children to artificial intelligence, robotics and other emerging technologies, says Datuk Chang Lih Kang.
The Science, Technology and Innovation Minister said the government was, however, looking at strengthening the overall technology ecosystem and recognised the need to nurture talent from a young age.
"To be frank, not yet for the kids, but slowly. Definitely, because we are looking at pushing the entire ecosystem. We need to train our talent from young," he told reporters here on Saturday (Aug 8).
He said this after the official opening of Lumina AI School, which is wholly owned by Big Apple Education Group.
Chang said the Education Ministry was also looking into the school syllabus, while the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry was focusing more on out-of-classroom programmes to expose students to science and technology.
He said among the programmes run by the ministry were Techlympics and Minggu Sains Negara, which provide students with out-of-classroom experiences in science and technology.
Chang said the government was also expanding the scope of Technical and Vocational Education and Training, which traditionally focused on more conventional fields, to include courses involving coding, robotics and AI.
"Some of these have already been implemented, and slowly we are going to push further," he said.
On initiatives for younger children, Chang said the government welcomed efforts by the private sector to complement its programmes.
He said private sector initiatives to expose children aged four to 18 to AI and other technologies could complement the government's current focus on those aged 18 and above.
"We welcome all initiatives from the private sector that could complement the government initiative," he said.
Chang also stressed that the country needed to address its shortage of skilled talent as AI and other emerging technologies continued to develop.
"In the next five to 10 years, we will need a lot of talent. In fact, one of our problems is talent and training talent.
"When we want to push this ecosystem, it is not so much about demand, technology or infrastructure. Talent is the main difficulty we are facing," he said.
He added that the government would also need to provide retraining opportunities for workers whose jobs could be affected by emerging technologies such as AI.
"We need more training centres or retraining centres because we are not only looking at kids. Those who are working in industries and might be replaced by emerging technologies like AI also need retraining," he said.
