Kuala lumpur: Petroliam Nasional Bhd (PETRONAS), government-linked investment companies (GLICs), and government-linked companies (GLCs) have adopted three strategies to tackle the issue of Malaysians working in positions below their qualifications.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the measures were introduced as 36 per cent of the local workforce work below their qualifications, even as energy, digital, and advanced manufacturing industries report shortages of credentialled talent.
The three approaches comprise talent placement within their own ecosystems and vendor networks, expanding outreach to strategic sectors, and strengthening Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions.
Under the first approach, talent development is embedded directly across their operations and vendor networks, including the TNB's PROTEGE-Ready to Work, TNB's ILSAS, and the Sime Darby Industrial Academy, which trains school-leavers as heavy-equipment and diesel technicians for mining, construction, and energy.
As of July 2026, the academy had produced 3,400 graduates with Malaysian Skills Certificate (SKM) Levels One to Three qualifications for heavy equipment, automotive, and natural gas vehicle (NGV) courses, as well as 366 graduates from the Professional Certification Programme (PROCERT).
According to the report, in expanding outreach to strategic sectors, Khazanah, through its K-Youth programme, has trained youths under its Accelerate, Nurture, and Optimise initiatives.
Since 2023, a total of 35,000 youths have been trained, achieving an employability rate of 83 per cent, including the placement of 9,934 youths with growing semiconductor companies in 2025.
Meanwhile, TVET empowerment is also being intensified through the TM TVET MADANI initiative, which involves an investment of RM3.5 million from 2024 to 2026 to sponsor 947 students.
PETRONAS has also invested over RM90 million through the VISTA programme across 37 TVET institutions, producing more than 14,000 graduates since 1992 and enrolling 985 individuals in 2025 alone.
To coordinate these initiatives, the government introduced the BAKAT MADANI national talent platform in June 2026, uniting PETRONAS, six GLICs, and their GLCs.
It combines these efforts into a single visible pathway, from education to training, certification, and dignified work, with a shared commitment to reach 25,000 Malaysians by the end of 2027.
GEAR-uP is a national initiative launched by the MOF in August 2024 to drive high-value domestic investments.
The programme brings together GLICs to spearhead Malaysia's structural reforms as envisioned under the MADANI Economy framework.