GEORGE TOWN: The Ministry of Human Resources (KESUMA) will prioritise discussions on workers’ skills, social security, and the movement of migrant labour among regional countries during forums, meetings, and conferences held in conjunction with Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025.
In an exclusive interview with Bernama, Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong said the issues will also be highlighted at the ‘ASEAN Year of Skills’ which is recognised by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
“This ASEAN Year of Skills aims to mobilise the ASEAN member countries to look at how we can prepare the ASEAN workforce to face challenges, for example, the 21st-century economic trends in AI (artificial intelligence), digitalisation and the green economy.
“It mobilises ASEAN members to think as one region facing economic challenges,“ he said at the Penang Bernama Bureau Office here.
Sim, who is Bukit Mertajam Member of Parliament, said ASEAN has great potential to become a strategic hub in the face of global economic trends with a large population that provides opportunities as a market and source of labour.
According to him, if significant investments in sectors such as semiconductors, electric vehicles (EVs), and robotics enter the region, the ASEAN workforce must be prepared to meet the demand for expertise in these fields.
“For instance, with new conditions emerging from European countries and the United States regarding the green agenda (green economy), is our workforce prepared to take on roles such as programmers, engineers, technicians, or experts in the field?” he said.
Sim said KESUMA will also address the issue of workers’ social security, particularly emerging risks that were previously overlooked under older economic frameworks and emphasised the need for a new approach to safeguard ASEAN workers.
“In this context, Malaysia, through KESUMA, will organise an international social security conference. This platform will not only bring together voices from ASEAN but also from around the world to explore trends in social security protection systems.
“For example, we will examine how to support workers in the gig economy and enhance their social security,“ he said.
According to Sim, a meeting at the ASEAN level will also be convened to address a pressing issue among regional countries—the movement of migrant workers, particularly as Malaysia is one of the main destinations for these workers.
He said the discussions will focus on establishing more transparent management controls, rules, and laws, as well as enhancing protection measures for migrant workers employed within the ASEAN region.
Malaysia officially holds the position of ASEAN Chairmanship starting Jan 1 with the theme of “Inclusion and Sustainability” and this year marks the chairmanship for the fifth time after 1977, 1997, 2005 and 2015.
ASEAN consists of 10 countries in the Southeast Asian region namely Brunei, the Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
