SHAH ALAM, June 26 — As many as 4.5 million Malaysians are likely to lose their jobs by 2030, if they do not improve their skills or attend reskilling and upskilling programmes with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).

Human Resources Minister V. Sivakumar said this is based on the 2020 World Economic Forum warning that AI could cause a recession in the job market as it is already being used to automate tasks in various industries including manufacturing, healthcare and customer service.

“In the report, it was stated that in order to remain employed in the next two years, 50 per cent of workers will need to be retrained. With the advent of Industrial Revolution 4.0, there is an urgent need for us to transform the national workforce into a skilled workforce to remain relevant.

“However, we are fortunate because the newly emerging jobs are work that can be combined with technology and the need to improve skills is not only for career advancement or change, but to stay in the job,” he said in his speech in conjunction with the launch of the Industry Driven Talent Acceleration Programme (ID-TAP) 2023 at Selangor Human Resource Development Centre today.

As such, Sivakumar said the ministry through the Skill Development Fund Corporation (PTPK) in collaboration with Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad (TalentCorp) created ID-TAP which aims to improve skills and retrain 900 workers in the country based on industry needs.

For the initiative, Sivakumar said RM7.2 million was allocated for workers to be equipped with knowledge and skills required by industries such as mechatronics, electrical and electronic engineering, data analysis and information technology.

“Among the talent groups that are targeted are workers with work experience of five years or less,” he said adding that of the 900 workers to be selected, approval has been given to 627 participants with the most number from Kedah totalling 177, Selangor (88) and Negeri Sembilan (75).

Sivakumar said those interested in the programme can apply through the industry, their company or state skill development centres where several processes would be required at the training provider level. — Bernama