On 21 September 2023, the Sarawak Skills Group of Learning Institutions (Sarawak Skills) received three prestigious awards during the Malaysia Education & TVET Awards Ceremony 2023.
The three awards bestowed on Sarawak Skills are, namely Malaysia’s Best in Skills Training (Organization Brand Excellence – Presented to the Sarawak Skills Development Centre), Outstanding TVET Personality Award (Leadership – Presented to Hallman bin Sabri, Executive Director of the Sarawak Skills Group of Learning Institutions) and Best TVET Training Provider (Automotive & Welding – Presented to the Automotive and Welding Institute of Sarawak (AWISAR)). AWISAR is part of the Sarawak Skills Group of Learning Institutions. Last year (October 2022), Sarawak Skills received the Best TVET Training Provider Award (Industrial Training Category) during the inaugural Malaysia Education & TVET Awards 2022 in Kuala Lumpur.
Commenting on the awards, Hallman bin Sabri who is also the Chairman of the Federation of Malaysian Skills Development Centres (FMSDC) highlighted, “For the Sarawak Skills Group of Learning Institutions, the three awards will rank among our significant achievements during our ongoing voyage to facilitate the noble cause of talent development within Malaysia and distant shores. Indeed, the awards are an eloquent testimony to Sarawak Skills’ role and contributions as a stakeholder in the transformation of our nation’s vibrant socio-economic landscape. In a nutshell, receiving these awards is a testament to Sarawak Skills’ unwavering commitment to fly the flag of excellence in post-secondary education, and training for current and future generations of the workforce.” He continued, “On this momentous occasion, I wish to take this opportunity to thank the Chairman of Sarawak Skills and the Management Council Members, our stakeholders comprising the government, various sectors of industry, parents, alumni, students and staff members for their support over the years. Indeed, they have contributed tremendously to the transformation of Sarawak Skills into an award-winning Hub of Industry-Driven Talent Development! Yes, today’s awards will spur us on to raise the bar even higher, especially in the development of an agile, future-ready workforce for Sarawak, and Malaysia as a whole.”
Hallman also shared, “The Sarawak Skills Development Centre (Pusat Pembangunan Kemahiran Sarawak) is an organisation formed in 1994 under the Societies Act 1966. Various industries are members of the Sarawak Skills Development Centre (Sarawak Skills), with a Management Council elected every three (3) years to oversee the management and administration of the centre. Currently, Sarawak Skills has more than 70 members from various industry sectors such as oil and gas, plantation (oil palm), timber, manufacturing, engineering, aviation and many other priority industries. The members’ numerous contributions over the years have enabled Sarawak Skills to provide the very best of industry-relevant education and training for the populace.”
He continued, “As a stakeholder in the transformation of Sarawak’s economic, educational and digital landscape, Sarawak Skills has adopted a multipronged approach to talent development in line with the Sarawak Post Covid-19 Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS 2030).”
In this respect, Sarawak Skills has developed various new programmes to support the various sectors of industries. For example, to support the Government’s initiatives to Go Green, Sarawak Skills has launched the following programmes: HEV, EV and Hydrogen Vehicle Service and Maintenance, and Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Design & Installation. Other new programmes include Underwater Welding and Cutting Operation for the Oil and Gas sector and Water Fabrication for the Manufacturing sector.
Currently, the Sarawak Skills Group of Learning Institutions comprises nine (9) campuses/training centres located in Kuching, Sri Aman, Mukah and Miri divisions. This includes i-CATS University College which offers MQA accredited diploma, bachelor’s degree and postgraduate programmes. In the pipeline is a new training centre/institution, namely the Advanced Automotive and Mobility Technology College (AAMTC) in Kuching.
Second from left: Yang Berhormat Tuan Mustapha @ Mohd Yunus bin Sakmud, Deputy Minister of Human Resources, Ministry of Human Resources Malaysia presents the Outstanding TVET Personality Award for Leadership to Hallman bin Sabri, Executive Director of Sarawak Skill and Chairman of the Federation of Malaysian Skills Development Centres (FMSDC).
First from right: Mr. Lee Seng Chee, Managing Editor of Education & TVET Asia publication.
First from left: Yang Berbahagia Dato Rajendran Ramachandran, Honourary Chairman of Koperasi Pendidikan Swasta Malaysia.
Second from left: Yang Berhormat Tuan Mustapha @ Mohd Yunus bin Sakmud, Deputy Minister of Human Resources, Ministry of Human Resources Malaysia presents the Malaysia’s Best in Skills Training Award (Organization Brand Excellence – for the Sarawak Skills Development Centre) to Hallman bin Sabri, Executive Director of Sarawak Skills and Chairman of the Federation of Malaysian Skills Development Centres (FMSDC).
Second from left: Yang Berhormat Tuan Mustapha @ Mohd Yunus bin Sakmud, Deputy Minister of Human Resources, Ministry of Human Resources Malaysia presents the Best TVET Training Provider Award (Automotive & Welding – for the Automotive and Welding Institute of Sarawak (AWISAR)) to Ts. Jaidil bin Yakop, General Manager of AWISAR
