Malaysia is a maritime country, evidenced by its 4,600-kilometre coastal line covering the South China Sea, Sulu Sea, Sulawesi Sea, and Straits of Malacca.  

The maritime industry is among the biggest contributor to the country’s economic development and prosperity, through its various sectors that include port, shipping, and supply chain.

Education in the field of maritime needs to be enhanced to meet the demand for professional, skilled, and semi-skilled labour in line with the speedy advancement of the country’s maritime industry.

The 2024 Budget has allocated RM6.8 billion for technical and vocational education and training (TVET), as announced by the Prime Minister. The approved allocation needs to be utilized well for the development of human capital for maritime field.

Dr Izyan Munirah Mohd Zaideen, senior lecturer at the Faculty of Marine Studies, Universit Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) said it is important that future human capital be enhanced to further develop the country to meet its aspirations.

“In this era of globalization, the maritime sector has kept advancing each year and the demands for professional labour have never decreased. The TVET programme has the potential to combine vocational and technical knowledge and skills that complement the industry’s current and future needs.

“The government’s effort in developing Malaysia Madani should be welcomed by agencies and industry players to ensure the maritime industry remain intact through professional development and increase the capacity and employability of human capital in this sector. The TVET programme will become an added value in a career path since it covers professional reskilling and upskilling certification programmes.

Various efforts need to be taken to position the country at par with other countries and to realize the 2040 Malaysia Maritime Strategic Plan in terms of the development of human capital highly skilled in the field of maritime.

For this purpose, more programmes and professional courses need to be offered at universities and colleges, offering different scopes to fulfil human resource needs, including technical, non-technical, executive, engineer, and professional technicians.  

UMT for example offers maritime programmes that include shipbuilding, nautical science, and maritime transport, maritime technology, and maritime laws. These programmes enable local students to prepare for their career and subsequently contribute their expertise to the country without relying on foreigners, as is happening in the construction sector.

To produce professional labour that meets the industry’s needs, the university has a special “ingredient” that will help develop the character of graduates and provide them an added value, and this is accomplished through various programmes including those on leadership and soft skills.

According to the Faculty of Maritime Studies lecturer Dr. Nur Hafiza Mr Muhamaruesa, university students need to equip themselves with a holistic package and not just being excellent in academic.

“The relationship between universities and industry players is important for building students’ characters that fit the employment market requirements.

“At UMT, students, especially those from the maritime programmes, are exposed to actual field work activities. We also bring the students to visit the ports and shipping companies and organize programmes involving industry players and students.  

She said programmes such as industrial attachments and official visits can indirectly provide exposure and opportunities to students to learn about the dynamics of actual operations in the maritime sector including the critical aspects in operations planning and  handling.

“Students are given the opportunity to visit port traffic controlling system and port cargo handling terminal to see for themselves the actual method of operations handling, which enables them to relate the theories they have learned in the classroom,” she said.

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Corporate Communications Office

Universiti Malaysia Terengganu