SHAH ALAM, Aug 8 — A Selangor Employment Skills Council will be formed to address the persistent mismatch between graduates’ skills and industry demands, said Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.
The new council, an initiative under the “Mission 4: A Productive and Inclusive Human Capital” of the Second Selangor Plan (RS-2), will bring together industry players, academia, policymakers, and workers to develop more adaptive workforce strategies in line with the evolving labour market needs.
“The mismatch between graduates' skills and those required by the job market remains a challenge.
“Following the experience gained through several state initiatives such as SCOUT, the state government will establish the Selangor Employment Skills Council.
“This is so that industry, academia, policymakers, and workers themselves can formulate an adaptive direction to address the skills mismatch that exists today,” he said when tabling the RS-2 during the Selangor State Legislative Assembly sitting yesterday.
Amirudin added that the initiative is part of the state government’s broader effort to build a more productive and inclusive workforce while ensuring human capital development keeps pace with economic transformation.
Selangor will also formalise the care economy, including informal childcare and elderly care workers who currently provide services without sufficient guidance.
“The government also plans to expand women’s participation in the workforce, particularly by helping mothers return to employment through the Career Comeback Programme,” he said.
Meanwhile, Selangor’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) ecosystem will be strengthened through a proposed TVET Incorporation, led by the Selangor Technical Skills Development Centre (STDC) to better coordinate training programmes and reduce duplication.
“The state’s TVET training framework, led by STDC, will be strengthened and coordinated more proactively through the proposed TVET Incorporation to avoid overlapping TVET offer in the market and truly achieve the goal of a high quality TVET system,” Amirudin said.
The Menteri Besar also noted that the Selangor People’s Tuition Centre will be expanded to benefit 200,000 students by 2030.
The proposed Selangor University Network Council aims to strengthen collaboration between public and private higher education institutions, including supporting University Selangor’s transition into a fully industry focused university.
On empowering local businesses, he said the Selangor Platform programme will be positioned as the state’s flagship entrepreneurship initiative targeting 150,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
The programme will offer mentoring, training, digital skills, financial management, and business expansion strategies.
Amirudin said that programmes such as GROW and DANA PLUS will improve SME access to financing and markets, while Selangor Halal Hub 2.0 will help local halal businesses expand into the ASEAN market.
