KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 31 — The German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) will share expertise and experience in establishing cooperation with the National Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Council.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is also the National TV Council chairman, said that the collaboration was to help create a unique action plan tailored to Malaysia’s TVET programme.

He said the matter was decided through a meeting with representatives from Bosch-Haus and DIHK together with the German-Malaysian Institute (GMI) under the Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA), during his recent visit to Bosch in Berlin, Germany.

"The meeting also agreed that the Malaysian-German Chamber of Commerce will take the lead in coordinating German companies in Malaysia and be part of a special advisory council to build the TVET ecosystem in Malaysia,” he said in a statement here today.

He added that the meeting also decided that the German Chamber of Commerce would play an important role in promoting the GDVT (German Dual Vocational Training) programme involving the participation of Malaysian industry.

This will help align Malaysia’s skilled workforce to German standards and make them more competitive and internationally recognised, he said.

Ahmad Zahid believes that the future of the TVET industry is bright and that cooperation with established TVET institutions such as Germany will certainly catalyse the TVET ecosystem in Malaysia.

However, he said that the success of the action plan will depend on dedication, effective collaboration and access to existing expertise sharing.

"Insya-Allah, with full commitment and cooperation, I am confident, like in Germany, Japan, and many other developed countries — TVET will be the main choice of students and be a major contributor to our country’s workforce,” he said.

He also said that Malaysia is currently developing a comprehensive action plan known as the National TVET Policy 1.0 which will shape the future of vocational education in Malaysia which will also shape the aspirations and opportunities of Malaysian youths.

"I believe that the talent of Malaysian youths should not be limited solely to academic achievements but they should be guided by their interest in the field of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), which requires practical skills,” he said.

Ahmad Zahid said that after the visit, he also had the opportunity to witness the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between GMI and TH Brandenburg University of Applied Sciences.

The MoU aims to create academic collaboration for German A-Level Preparatory Programme (GAPP) students, explore study paths for GMI diploma graduates, training of trainers (ToT) opportunities and create a GMI staff exchange programme.

Also accompanying him on the official visit to Berlin were MARA chairman Datuk Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki, MARA deputy director-general Datuk Zulfikri Osman and GMI chief executive officer Ahmad Solihin Mohamed Yusoff. — Bernama