THE Penang Development Corporation (PDC) and Walta Engineering Sdn Bhd (Walta) today took part in a symbolic agreement exchange ceremony to nurture Penang’s talent development and to expand the existing Walta Centre of Excellence (WCOE) in Batu Kawan.
In March this year, PDC entered into a 15-year lease agreement with Walta for the latter’s expansion plan to develop a building adjacent to the existing Batu Kawan SME Centre.
The new building would serve as a Technical & Vocational Education Training (TVET) Advance Machining Lab and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) centre.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, who was present to witness the lease agreement exchange, was pleased with the initiative that was supported by the state through PDC and InvestPenang.
“This agreement exchange is a significant milestone to nurture talent development, especially in TVET.
“WCOE is a corporate skills development and TVET centre as over 1,400 total participants have attended the Corporate Skills Training up to date.
“Over 110 TVET graduates have been produced in the area of industrial automation and precision machining and the state hopes the number will increase further with the new building expansion.
“The state remains committed to deepening the talent pool in Penang, through various STEM initiatives that are aimed at building a healthy talent pipeline to meet the industry’s growing demand,” he said in his speech before witnessing the agreement exchange ceremony between PDC and Walta at WCOE in Batu Kawan today.
PDC was represented by its chief executive officer Datuk Aziz Bakar while WCOE was represented by its chief executive officer Moey Lip Seng.
Aside from TVET, Chow mentioned there were some other ongoing initiatives by the state, which include the Penang Internship Subsidy Programme (PISP) and the Penang Future Foundation (PFF).
“We will continue to spearhead the development of a sustainable ecosystem, including the physical and digital infrastructure, workforce, environment and liveability of Penang,” he said.
Earlier, Moey said the centre would have a collaboration with various agencies to promote STEM education.
“We are committed to ensuring our students do not encounter mismatch challenges when they enter the workforce,” he said.
Also present were Bukit Tambun assemblyman Goh Choon Aik, Walta Group managing director Goh Kheng Sneah and Chow’s special investment adviser Datuk Seri Lee Kah Choon.
Story by Edmund Lee
Pix by Muhamad Amir Irsyad Omar
Video by Noor Siti Nabilah Noorazis