MORE than 100,000 students are expected to benefit from a new STEM talent pilot in Penang by 2030, as Malaysia steps up efforts to develop home-grown talent for its expanding high-value technology industries.
Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir launched the STEM Talent Pilot Project in George Town today alongside Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, with the initiative designed to align education and skills development more closely with future economic and labour market needs.
The joint initiative between the Economy Ministry and Penang government builds on the Penang STEM Talent Blueprint unveiled by Chow in September 2024.
It brings together government agencies, schools, STEM centres and industry players to develop talent based on the skills demanded by the economy.
Four programmes will be introduced across different levels of schooling — Ignite: STEM Education and Ignite: MathQuest for primary pupils, Embed: AI on Wheels for lower secondary students, and Embed: Technical Skill Learning for upper secondary students.
The programmes were developed by Tech Dome Penang, Penang Math Platform, Penang Science Cluster and Penang STEM.
Akmal said the project would widen access to hands-on exposure to emerging technologies, particularly among students in rural areas and lower-income communities.
“This project aims to reach more than 100,000 students from 2026 to 2030, with particular attention also given to rural schools and lower-income communities,” he said.
“This step is important to widen opportunities, develop practical hands-on skills in new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), data science, robotics and digital technology, while opening pathways to high-value careers,” he added.
Penang was selected as the pilot location because of its established manufacturing and technology ecosystem.
The state’s manufacturing sector grew by 10 per cent in 2025, while its gross domestic product reached RM130.3 billion. Penang also accounted for 48.9 per cent of Malaysia’s total exports in June 2026.
The initiative supports the objectives of the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), the New Industrial Master Plan 2030 (NIMP 2030) and the National Semiconductor Strategy (NSS), including the national target of developing 60,000 skilled engineers in areas such as chip design, advanced packaging and research and development.
The Economy Ministry also called on industry players to contribute expertise, mentorship, industrial visits and project-based learning opportunities.
The pilot will be evaluated and refined before its model is considered for expansion to other states and economic sectors.
Budget 2027 in Final Stages
Separately, Akmal said the Economy Ministry was in the final stages of screening development expenditure proposals for 2027 before submitting them to the Finance Ministry.
He said the ministry expected to complete the process by the middle of August as part of preparations for the Second Rolling Plan (RP2) under the 13MP.
“At the Economy Ministry, we have reached the final stage of Budget screening before we submit the proposals we have drawn up for development expenditure in 2027 to MoF,” Akmal said.“I expect that by the middle of this month, all processes at the Economy Ministry will be completed.”
He said the ministry was assessing existing project commitments alongside proposals for new initiatives to ensure development spending remained aligned with implementation capacity.
“For RP2, there are certainly several areas where I see a need, whether in terms of infrastructure or how government development expenditure can enhance or accelerate our move towards the high-growth, high-value industries that we have proposed,” he said.
“For development expenditure in 2027, we are looking at strengthening the 13th Malaysia Plan,” he added. - August 10, 2026
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