KUALA LUMPUR, 29 March 2018 – Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak today launched the Malaysia Global Talent (MGT) programme - a collaboration between Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad (TalentCorp) and InvestKL, supported by the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) - aimed at addressing challenges faced by industries when acquiring talent, while empowering Malaysian talent to become leaders of the future.

MGT aims to nurture 5,500 global Malaysian leaders by the year 2022. Phase one of MGT will bring together 12 top global MNCs and 10 public universities in a collaboration to select, mentor and nurture Malaysia’s most promising talents.

“MGT will provide opportunities for Malaysians to learn from the very best,” said TalentCorp Chief Executive Officer, Shareen Shariza Dato’ Abdul Ghani. “The scale of the MNCs’ capabilities, the development, sharing of knowledge and best practices will prepare our workforce for the future of work.”

Malaysia’s talent landscape comprises of dynamic individuals who have global experience and capabilities. Ranked 2nd in ASEAN and 23rd globally in World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Competitiveness Report (2017-2018), with five Malaysian universities listed among the world’s top 300 best universities in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings, the need to empower and recognise Malaysian talent is ever crucial.

“Our focus is to look beyond developing talent. The MGT strives to connect talent with global opportunities as talent mobility will enhance Malaysia into a dynamic talent hub,” said Shareen Shariza.

“There is a growing need to broaden the supply of good young professionals and meet the demands of global organisations here in Malaysia. We are confident that the MGT programme will be able to develop Malaysian talent as strong leaders who will drive the country’s economic progress, which in turn attracts global companies to establish presence in Malaysia,” said InvestKL Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Zainal Amanshah.

“As of 2017, InvestKL has been successful at creating nearly 11,000 high skilled regional jobs – many of which are opportunities for learning to Malaysia’s rich and diverse pool of bright young talent,” he added.

The MGT programme will focus on the three talent groups below:

1. The MGT Young Executive Programme
2. The MGT Senior Executive Programme
3. The MGT Apprenticeship Programme

It offers Malaysian professionals opportunities such as secondments, internships, mentorship programmes and knowledge-sharing sessions with C-suite personalities from prestigious MNCs. The programme will also establish world-class Centres of Excellence which will function as a focal point to discuss leadership opportunities, global best practices, research and training for participants.

Among the participating MNCs include Schlumberger, Linde, Honeywell, IBM and Cargill with universities such as University of Malaya (UM), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and Heriot-Watt University.

Following the launch of MGT, the Prime Minister, accompanied by Minister of Federal Territories, Datuk Seri Utama Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor; Minister of International Trade and Industry, Dato' Sri Mustapa Mohamed; InvestKL Chairman, Datuk Seri Michael Yam and Datuk Zainal toured the InvestKL: Impacting Malaysian Lives Through Innovation showcase.

Also present were Minister of Higher Education, Dato' Seri Haji Idris Jusoh, Minister of International Trade and Industry II, Dato’ Seri Ong Ka Chuan; Mayor of Kuala Lumpur, Tan Sri Mohd Amin Nordin Abd Aziz and Shareen Shariza.

More than 20 global MNCs participated in the showcase which presents Innovation and Digitalisation at its best. These MNCs are showcasing their latest innovations and highlighting how these technology and knowledge are transferred to Malaysians.