SHAH ALAM, July 7 — Malaysia’s booming data centre ecosystem would create high-skill jobs in fields including network engineering, cloud architecture and data science, said Digital Minister Gobind Singh.
He added that entry-level positions could offer monthly salaries between RM3,000 and RM7,000, while wages for senior roles could reach RM10,000 to RM30,000, exceeding Malaysia’s 2024 median salary of about RM2,790.
“Based on the Bank Negara Malaysia report From Bytes to Bucks: The Economics of Data Centres in Malaysia, published in the third quarter of 2025, data centre development contributes to the creation of high-skill jobs with high salaries,” he told the Dewan Rakyat during the question-and-answer session today.
Gobind was responding to a supplementary question from Datuk Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik (Harapan-Balik Pulau) about the benefits of data centre development, including the creation of high-skill jobs, and whether the industry is just making use of Malaysia’s relatively affordable water and electricity rates.
He added that major technology firms also provide specialised training and certification programmes for local talent.
Addressing concerns raised over AI-based facilities, Gobind said a Data Centre Task Force (DCTF) has been set up to coordinate and evaluate data centre development proposals.
He said every data centre project would be assessed based on factors including electricity and water demand, land requirements, digital infrastructure, and sustainability considerations.
“The DCTF would also monitor compliance with efficiency standards such as Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) … and Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE),” he added.
Gobind also said data centre operators are encouraged to adopt sustainable practices — like renewable energy, energy-efficient cooling technologies, water reuse systems, and rainwater harvesting — to reduce the burden on national resources.
“Data centres are part of the ecosystem when we look at building an AI-based country. We need to ensure the ecosystem we develop can support the needs of the country moving forward,” he told the Lower House.
At the same session, Khairil Nizam Khirudin (PN-Jerantut) proposed the government use the Malaysia Space Agency’s (MYSA) satellite technology and geospatial analytics to monitor the impact of data centre clusters.
Gobind, who welcomed the proposal, added that the government is looking into developing a dashboard to support decision-making and DCTF initiatives.
