KUALA LUMPUR, April 16 — The Communications and Multimedia Ministry plans to set up a computer programming school for secondary school leavers.

Its minister Gobind Singh Deo said the initiative was to train the younger generation to be IT (information technology) savvy so as to be able to compete in the digital age.

He said his ministry was looking at various models in building and developing the computer programming syllabus suitable for schools in Malaysia.

A test run for the computer programming school was hoped could be implemented in Kuala Lumpur and Penang by end of the year, he told reporters after a dialogue session with 50 digital ninjas under the Digital Ninja Programme, organised by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), here today.

Gobind said he had visited Ecole 42, a computer programming school in Paris, would try to bring the model here to Malaysia.

On the Digital Ninja programme, Gobind said digital technology presented the people with borderless opportunities and changes, therefore there was a critical need to prepare the youths for the world of digital technology to remain competitive.

"Part of that is to equip Malaysian youths with the right skills set and thinking approach that will help them to remain relevant in the future workforce,” he added.

The Digital Ninja programme is a digital making skills enhancement programme targeted at Malaysian students aged 13-17 years who possess great digital making talents and have shown tremendous potential in becoming future digital tech experts. — Bernama