Malaysia Must Adapt Fast To Current Workforce Trends - Minister Khairy

KUALA LUMPUR, May 26 (Bernama) -- Malaysia has to adapt fast to changes in the culture and structure of current workforce trends, especially involving young people, says Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin. He said this included providing a suitable working environment and being more flexible for young employees to maximise their potential. "Today's young workforce holds interests and lifestyles which are different from the managers of today, and it will do everyone good if we can embrace rather than resist it. "The time for moral imposition has passed and if we truly appreciate the process of generational baton passing, we have to accept, embrace and facilitate this towards mutual goals," he said when addressing the special keynote entitled, 'Our Young Human Capital - Our Hope, Our Future' at the 2nd Abdullah Ahmad Badawi: Human Capital Summit here Wednesday. He said the many trends, if facilitated correctly, would produce a more knowledgeable human capital which was the most important factor in the knowledge economy. Khairy said a paradigm shift in equipping the youth was also a must as one of the initiatives to enhance current human capital by getting them, especially the children, ready for the digital age. He said it was time for the children to learn the language of the future which was computer coding and programming skills, adding that as the world changed at a rapid rate, the digital world complemented by the domination of knowledge economy forced the government to adapt fast so as not to be left behind. Themed 'Enhancing Human Capital for a Competitive Economy', the summit is organised to bring together senior representatives from government, business, academia and training providers to discuss the key issues facing human capital development in Malaysia and chart the way forward for the nation and organisation. --BERNAMA