AI to impact over 30% of jobs in Malaysia over next decade, says minister

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Tuesday, 07 Jan 2025 5:22 PM MYT

PUTRAJAYA: Government analysis shows that more than 30% of jobs in Malaysia will be affected by artificial intelligence (AI) in the next 10 years, with key sectors such as manufacturing, services and information technology expected to undergo significant transformation, says Chang Lih Kang.

The Science, Technology, and Innovation Minister said statistics revealed that more than 600,000 workers must undergo reskilling training within three to five years to remain relevant in the increasingly competitive job market.

“Furthermore, the country is projected to require an additional 500,000 skilled workers by 2030 to meet the demands of the technology and technical sectors. These figures highlight the urgent need to develop an effective training and certification ecosystem,” he said at the launch of the Malaysia Board of Technologists (MBOT) Professional Development Certification here on Tuesday (Jan 7).

Chang said Malaysia’s workforce must be prepared to face these changes as reskilling and upskilling processes become crucial, especially in technology and technical fields, so that Malaysia can remain competitive globally and meet the growing demands of the industry.

“Therefore, the government is actively ensuring that the courses and training offered are aligned with international standards and the needs of Industry 4.0. This includes courses in cybersecurity, smart systems management, and data analytics,” he said.

In efforts to strengthen the country’s competitiveness, Chang said the Science, Technology, and Innovation Ministry, through MBOT, has been tasked with developing initiatives to bridge the skills gap among workers and upgrade the capabilities of the local talent pool.

For this purpose, MBOT established the Technology and Technical Professional Development Council (TPDC) to develop a comprehensive quality assurance framework and certification for short-term courses in technology and technical fields while addressing the growing industry demand for a highly skilled workforce.

According to him, no specific body ensures the quality of the short courses offered, adding that the TPDC was formed to assess the quality of instructors, course content and approach, and evaluation methods, among other things.

Chang said through the TPDC framework, the training provided to Malaysian workers is recognised by the local industry and meets professional standards, ensuring that the skills acquired align with the ever-evolving needs of the global industry.

Meanwhile, MBOT president Prof Emerita Datuk Dr Siti Hamisah Tapsir, in her speech, said MBOT was established to achieve the goals outlined in the National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy 2021-2030, saying that one of the key thrusts of the policy emphasises efforts to enhance efficiency and professionalism of human capital in technology and innovation sectors.

“TPDC is also a crucial platform to engage various stakeholders in determining the direction for the development of relevant and competitive technology and technical human capital,” she said.

She added that collaboration with the Human Resources Development Corporation (HRD Corp) would recognise all short-term courses certified by MBOT as focus-area and industry-specific programmes. – Bernama

Source: https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2025/01/07/ai-to-impact-over-30-of-jobs-in-malaysia-over-next-decade-says-minister?fbclid=IwY2xjawHxqX5leHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHfZ9-kPNtLG2-NZgo0EmBkB8eXo_SWEZ9EmKR0l8RplAlywbKxZoRG-dvw_aem_OH3x_HioCPVFiXfGZyTTBg#:~:text=PUTRAJAYA%3A%20Government%20analysis%20shows%20that,transformation%2C%20says%20Chang%20Lih%20Kang

620,000 Malaysian jobs across 10 sectors at high risk of displacement by advancement of AI, digital tech and green economy, says TalentCorp study

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By Anis Hazim / theedgemalaysia.com

19 Nov 2024, 09:00 am

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Human Resources Minister Steven Sim said on Monday the TalentCorp study aims to examine how these transformative forces are reshaping industries, while identifying emerging job roles and pinpointing the skills crucial for Malaysia’s future workforce. (Photo by Zahid Izzani/The Edge)

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 19): An estimated 620,000 jobs across 10 key sectors of the Malaysian economy are at risk of convergence or displacement if they do not reskill or pivot to an adjacent role, based on a study on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI), digital technology, and the green economy on the Malaysian workforce.

These were the findings of the Phase 1 of the study — conducted by Talent Corporation Malaysia Bhd (TalentCorp) — which focused on 10 key sectors — namely aerospace, chemicals, electrical and electronics (E&E), energy and power, food manufacturing and service, global business services, ICT, medical devices, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and wholesale and retail trade. These sectors collectively contributed 60% or RM933 billion to Malaysia’s gross domestic products (GDP) in 2023.

Unveiled by the Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong on Monday, the study aims to examine how these transformative forces are reshaping industries, while identifying emerging job roles and pinpointing the skills crucial for Malaysia’s future workforce. 

Phase 1 of the study, which were undertaken from April to September this year, found that around 18% or 620,000 jobs of the 3.5 million employed under the core businesses of these 10 sectors are expected to be highly impacted in the next three to five years, while an estimated 1.8 million or 53% are medium-impacted employees.  

Highly impacted means these roles are at risk of convergence or displacement, while medium impacted means the roles are still relevant but such employees need to upskill or deliver beyond what would be traditionally expected, according to a report on the study’s findings. Low impacted roles are those that require mostly ongoing self-improvement to stay relevant.

Also identified were 60 emerging job roles that will become increasingly important. Of these jobs, 70% are in AI and digital, 20% in the green economy, and the remaining 10% in new technologies. 

All sectors recognise the pressing necessity of transitioning towards AI, digitalisation and green economy trends to remain competitive and sustainable, and employers are increasingly seeking talent with specialised skills in these areas, the report noted.

“The study by TalentCorp highlights immense opportunities for Malaysian workers as AI, digitalisation, and the green economy transform industries. By identifying critical skills and emerging roles, we empower Malaysians to adapt and lead globally, driving sustainable growth and resilience in our workforce,” Steven Sim said at the launch of the study on Monday.

TalentCorp plans to undertake Phase 2 of the study, which will involve an additional 12 sectors, next year.

“TalentCorp is working closely with industry stakeholders to ensure the Malaysian workforce remains adaptable,” TalentCorp group chief executive officer Thomas Mathew said in a statement.

“As Malaysia progresses towards a green and digital economy, TalentCorp’s initiatives ensure the workforce is not only employable but capable of driving innovation and global leadership, paving the way for a sustainable future,” he said.

Edited ByTan Choe Choe

UK stands to lose eight million jobs from AI, analysis warns

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By Irina Anghel / Bloomberg 27 Mar 2024, 03:05 pm

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(March 27): As many as eight million UK workers are at risk of losing their jobs to artificial intelligence (AI) with current government policy, the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) warned.

AI already impacts 11% of tasks done by UK staff, a figure that could rise to almost 60% if firms integrate the technology more deeply, the think tank warned in a report published Wednesday. Part-time, entry level and back-office jobs such as customer service are most at risk but higher-paying jobs will increasingly be affected.

The findings highlight the challenges facing the government as it increasingly bets on AI to cure the UK’s productivity problem. Companies across the board are using AI to drive up efficiency, while the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer announced an £800-million (RM4.77-trillion) investment in technology and AI to boost public-sector output.

“Already existing generative AI could lead to big labour market disruption or it could hugely boost economic growth, either way it is set to be a game changer for millions of us,” said Carsten Jung, senior economist at IPPR, which analysed 22,000 tasks in the UK across all job types.

“A jobs apocalypse is not inevitable — government, employers and unions have the opportunity to make crucial design decisions now that ensure we manage this new technology well. If they don’t act soon, it may be too late.”

In its own report published in November, the government acknowledged that AI was already affecting jobs in the finance and insurance sector. It called for schools and employers to equip workers with the skills they need to adapt.

Government policy will make the difference between job losses and economic growth in the context of AI adoption, the IPPR report said.

Modelling the potential impact of a “second wave” of AI adoption on the jobs market, the IPPR found the technology could add as much as £306 billion per year to the UK economy without any job losses in the best-case scenario, depending on government policy. AI could also deliver wage gains of as much as 30%.

Without any policy changes, researches estimated AI will wipe out eight million jobs with no economic gains.

The UK lags India, the US, Germany, Canada and Israel when it comes to AI skills, separate research from LinkedIn showed. That’s as fewer than half of UK businesses are investing in upskilling their workers, according to Janine Chamberlin, UK country manager for the employment-focused social media platform.

Around 32 of 10,000 LinkedIn members in the UK have AI skills, including machine learning or prompt engineering. Even as that number has doubled since 2016, it’s still “relatively small”, Chamberlin said in an interview in London.

Women and young people could be more at risk to be displaced by AI. Women are disproportionately employed in those tasks that are most impacted by the technology, while companies could post fewer graduate vacancies and choose to rely more on AI for entry-level tasks.

The government should develop an industrial AI strategy to support job transitions and distribution of automation gains across the economy, as opposed to being capture by a few companies, the IPPR said. Recommendations include fiscal incentives to augment rather than displace jobs, regulatory changes, and supporting green jobs that are less prone to automation.

“Investing in skills development within an organisation traditionally has been seen more as a ‘nice to have’, and with the introduction of GenAI, it is now a ‘must have’,” Chamberlin said. “In an organisation, it’s about understanding what are the skills that I have, what are the skills that I need and how am I going to bridge that gap? The same thing applies at country level.”

Bankers will see three-quarters of the workday transformed by AI

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By Katherine Doherty / Bloomberg

27 Feb 2024, 08:21 pm

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(Feb 27): Artificial intelligence (AI) is likely to replace or at least lend a hand in tasks that take up almost three-quarters of the time bank employees now spend working.

That’s the conclusion of a new analysis by consultancy Accenture, which said banking has the potential to benefit more from the technology than any other industry. Just 27% of employees’ time currently has a low potential of being transformed, according to the analysis.

“There is a reinvention that is happening across banks, a way for firms to step back and re-evaluate ways of working,” Keri Smith, global banking data and AI lead at Accenture, said in an interview.

As the National Higher Education Fund Corp (PTPTN) enters its 27th year of supporting the higher education needs of Malaysian students, the stakes have never been higher. Its mandate remains: to ensure no Malaysian student who wishes to pursue tertiary education is left behind because of financial constraints.

The release of ChatGPT more than a year ago prompted many firms to boost hiring for AI-related positions and test more uses for generative AI, which can summarise documents, write emails and churn out responses to users’ questions. The world’s biggest banks have been experimenting, spurred by the promise that the technology will boost staffers’ productivity and cut costs.

“Every bank needs to think through their talent strategy, and how to take this technology to scale,” Smith said.

At Citigroup Inc, all 40,000 coders will have the ability to experiment with different AI technologies by the end of March. Analysts at Bank of New York Mellon Corp can wake up two hours later to write their research, because AI technology can create a rough draft and prepare related data for them overnight, chief executive officer Robin Vince said on an earnings call last month.

Banks can boost their productivity by as much as 30% using generative AI over the next three years, according to Accenture.

Bank tellers

Banking at its core is about deposits and lending money, which won’t change, Smith said. Instead, generative AI will either automate or augment work in different ways depending on the roles and tasks. About 60% of the routine tasks performed by bank tellers, whose jobs primarily involve collecting and processing data, could be supported by generative AI, Accenture found.

Loan officer assistants can either retain their role in a smaller existing group, or gain new skills and be moved to a different role elsewhere in the bank, Accenture said.

The consultancy used data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Occupational Information Network to analyse descriptions of 900 jobs across industries in the US. They then drilled in on 2.7 million banking employees as well as the 170 roles and 3,500 tasks they perform. They also looked at financial information from the largest 150 global banks.