Kuala lumpur: Over 13,679 engineers and skilled technical personnel have been trained and absorbed into various segments of the semiconductor industry since the launch of the National Semiconductor Strategy (NSS) in May 2024. This development marks a significant step towards Malaysia’s goal of training 60,000 highly skilled talents by 2030.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Deputy Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Liew Chin Tong highlighted the collaborative efforts with several universities and skills centers, including Universiti Sains Malaysia, Universiti Malaya, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, the Malaysian Institute of Microelectronic Systems (MIMOS), the Advanced Semiconductor Academy of Malaysia-SIDEC, and the Penang Skills Development Centre. These institutions are instrumental in providing training in areas such as integrated circuit design, advanced packaging, wafer fabrication, and related research and development.

Liew also mentioned a recent collaboration, where Collaborative Research in Engineering, Science and Technology (CREST), an agency under the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Human Resource Development Corporation on July 24, 2025. This agreement aims to enhance talent development under the NSS framework. The announcement was made during a session in the Dewan Rakyat in response to a query by Khairil Nizam Khirudin (PN-Jerantut) regarding the number of skilled engineers trained and the level of collaboration with multinational chipmakers.

Addressing Khairil Nizam’s additional question on talent migration, Liew acknowledged the challenge Malaysia faces with retaining semiconductor graduates. He noted that a significant number of graduates choose to work abroad, primarily due to better salary offers in places like Singapore. Liew emphasized the need for Malaysia to offer competitive salaries to retain talent within the high-tech sector.