THE State Government requires at least 80 per cent of the minimum local workforce employed by new manufacturing investors to comprise Sabahans to ensure employment opportunities created through new investments benefit locals.
Assistant Industrial Development, Entrepreneurship and Transport Minister Datuk Jonnybone J Kurum (pic) said the requirement complements the Malaysian Investment Development Authority’s (Mida) guideline that at least 80 per cent of a company’s full-time workforce during the operational phase must be Malaysian citizens.
He said the State Government’s requirement is in line with the Sabah First aspiration and reflects its commitment to giving Sabahans greater priority and wider opportunities in the industrial sector, adding that the approach would also strengthen access to employment, develop human capital, enhance workforce skills and generate broader socio-economic benefits for local communities.
“My Ministry is also working with the Social Security Organisation (Socso) Sabah and investors to implement job-matching initiatives based on the agency’s database of job seekers,” he said in reply to a question from Nabawan Assemblyman Datuk Abdul Ghani Mohd Yassin.
Jonnybone said the collaboration also includes plans to implement upskilling, reskilling and certification programmes tailored to meet the workforce requirements of incoming investors.
He said the Ministry would continue to examine suitable local content initiatives to ensure the benefits of investment inflows into Sabah are enjoyed directly and continuously by the people of the State.