May Day speech: Malaysians should equip themselves with skills to keep up

In his Labour Day message yesterday, Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said that to keep up with current changes, staff need to equip themselves with skills and improve their knowledge, Bernama reported.

He said this while highlighting that the country's current and future economy will be based on automation, artificial intelligence, big data analytics, robotics and internet of things (IoT).

Mohamed Azmin said: "we should all be prepared to fully adopt these technologies in meeting new challenges."

He expressed confidence in the talent and potential of Malaysian workers whose capabilities will make Malaysia's economy more competitive in the global market, adding "without their dedication and diligence Malaysia is unlikely to enjoy common prosperity."

He said: "Hence, let's celebrate the Workers Day with optimism and courage to embrace change.

"The future is challenging but opens up opportunities for those who are well prepared and equipped with skills."

Overall, the productivity of Malaysian workers by hours has risen steadily year by year and in 2018, it increased to 3.4%.