KUALA LUMPUR: Nearly seven years after its abolition in 2018, the National Service Training Programme (PLKN) 3.0 returns this year with a new concept and format following the Ministry of Defence’s decision to reintroduce the programme.
For a start, the 515th Territorial Army Regiment Camp here will be the first location to host the programme with more than 130 volunteer trainees from across the country scheduled to report tomorrow for the trial training.
The trainees, aged between 18 and 20, will undergo military and national service training for 45 days until Feb 25.
Based on the National Service Training Act 2003 (Act 628), National Security Policy, Defence White Paper, and other relevant policies, the PLKN 3.0 concept was formed with a combination of two key components, namely the National Service Training Core Component and the National Service Training Outcome Component, involving four phases.
The phased implementation of the programme aims to foster patriotism, national unity, and self-identity among Malaysian youth while equipping them with the resilience to face life’s challenges through physical and mental training experiences.
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin earlier stated that PLKN 3.0 emphasises the development of discipline, leadership, and an understanding of the nation’s history among the trainees.
He said PLKN 3.0 is also part of the broader approach towards achieving a comprehensive national defence by involving public contributions in ensuring the country’s peace and stability.
Following the trial training, the next phase of PLKN 3.0 will be conducted at 13 territorial army camps, 20 public universities, 33 polytechnics, 27 Teacher Education Institutes, as well as several Public Skills Training Institutes and Industrial Training Institutes which will serve as PLKN’s basic training sites across the country.
PLKN was first introduced in Dec 2003 as a three-month training programme that covered physical training, nation-building, character development, and community service modules, with 85,000 to 95,000 trainees annually and costing an average of RM600 million per year.
The programme was temporarily halted for a year in 2015 due to budget rationalisation efforts but was reintroduced in 2016 as PLKN 2.0, involving only 20,000 trainees per year before it was officially abolished in August 2018.
