Friday 27 November 2009

By Lee Wei Lian


KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 24 — The nation’s mismanagement of talent could have serious repercussions not only on its ambitions to become a high income economy on par with that of developed nations but could also lead it to fall further behind even its counterparts in the region.

Head of research at Corston-Smith Asset Management, Lim Tze Cheng, recently did a tour of South East Asian countries and came away sufficiently impressed that he feels Malaysia may soon be found lagging behind its neighbours that it was once ahead of.

He cited a recent visit to the Philippines, a current major supplier of maids, where he visited a company, International Container Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI) and he drew comparisons to local port champions Westport and Port of Tanjung Pelepas.
He said that ICTS now draws 50 per cent of its revenue from eight profitable ports outside the Philippines, and noted that no Malaysian port company can boast of similar achievements.
“I give it a 70 per cent chance that Malaysia will be exporting maids in 20 years. I wouldn’t be surprised if that happens unless we get our act together,” he said.

Lim says that the issues plaguing Malaysia includes its “problematic” education system and distressingly low ability to retain talent.
“Whoever manages to excel in our education system will be courted by Singapore,” he points out.
Lim is not the only one who is worried about Malaysia’s talent issues and there has been warnings from other parties as well including the World Bank and the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF).

MEF executive director Haji Shamsuddin Bardan says that Malaysia is currently a net exporter of talent with outflows exceeding inflows.
According to Haji Shamsuddin, Malaysia has only about 38,000 expatriates as compared with seventy to eighty thousand in the 1990s even while some 785,000 Malaysians are working abroad, two out of three of which are professionals.
“Our ability to attract expatriates is quite challenged,” he said.
If Malaysia falls further behind our neighbours in the next twenty years, it wil be a case of history repeating itself.

Lim points out that Malaysia in the 1970’s was once economically on par with Korea.
“Electronics will be dominated by Thailand and Philippines, plantations by Indonesia, financial services by Singapore and our oil could be depleted in 20 years,” Lim predicts.
“The (Malaysian) economy seems to be caught in a middle-income trap - unable to remain competitive as a high-volume, low-cost producer, yet unable to move up the value chain and achieve rapid growth by breaking into fast growing markets for knowledge and innovation-based products and services,” the World Bank said recently.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak appears aware of the problem and has been stressing the need for the country to embrace innovation to escape the “middle-income trap” as well as attract overseas talent, Malaysian or otherwise.
He noted recently as an anecdote that half of the medical specialists working at the Mt Elizabeth hospital in Singapore were Malaysians and two weeks ago hosted a dinner for about 100 Malaysians in Singapore and told them that the government would make Malaysia a better place to live and work in, to bring back its citizens who are residing overseas and also attract global talent to the country.

“We will create more opportunities, more excitement and more buzz in Malaysia to attract the Malaysian diaspora and expatriates to the country,” said Najib.

Lim says that revamping the education system could take years and one fast way to lure talent was to open the Malaysia My Second Home programme to talented individuals such as scientists and researchers instead of limiting it to just retirees.
Haji Shamsuddin says that the government needs to put in place the right policies and structures to retain local talent.
“Otherwise, we become a training ground for others,” he said.


********************************************************

It just tickles my funny bones, the primier's statement that " Malaysia will create more opportunities, more excitement, and more buzz in Malaysia to attract expats to the country".....

I cant think of what type of attractions he is talking about but i know more and more locals are trying to get away from the country for better life and income outside the country.

Wednesday 18 November 2009

Soundbites

Free vacation for problematic couples.

All i can sum out of the person or group who came out with this proposal is pathetic, ridiculously silly and gravely moronic. The free vacation plan offered by this particular state it seems would help save the marriages of couples who are on the brink of divorce!!

They must be kidding when they announced this plan.
I wonder what is their take out of the vacation plan given to 'those pathetic couple ( because they're near to being cheapskate), and whether the two ''free"nights spent at the state's scenic islands or beach resorts could eventually make them fall in love again and all those resentments which lead to their problematic relationships will disappeared after the two special nights.

Black will be Black.

Im not being racist.
But i hate black people who had been swarming Malaysia.
I hate them so much that i wish they'd just go disappear from the face of Malaysia. These are mostly Nigerian and Botswana ''students''. These people were and are still given visa by the Malaysian government, particularly the Ministry of Education to fill in those mushrooming private institute of higher learning in their ''dream'' to become educational hub in Asia.

These morons are very slacking in culture, stupidly snobbish, and thought they can go around Malaysia freely spending their black monies trading drugs.

Besides aliens from countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam, and Bangladesh, these blackies had been creating mountainous criminal problems with the love and assistance from ''hungry-for-black sweat and hugs'' Malay girls (whom those days rushing to grab all the Bangla lads working at pump stations), and obliviously ignorant and could care less house owners who'd rented their apartments and houses to them.

For the first half of the year, an estimated six thousand study visas had been accorded to these blackies men and women. And of course -- more to come. Malaysia Boleh!!


Talented Mr Economic Advisor.

The Selangor state government of Malaysia had once again prove their silliness managing the state after appointing Anwar Ibrahim as the economic advisor recently, pocketing an estimated RM1 million a year.

Probably the excited PKR (Parti Keadilan Rakyat) chief had been having bad memory lapsed and forgotten about Anwar's ''achievements'' during the economic crisis while he was the Finance Minister.

And Anwar Ibrahim?....
What else can he do besides sweeping all monies to his own interest?

Memang Boleh!