KUANTAN: Kolej Yayasan Pahang (KYP) became the first campus in the country to offer Level 3 Malaysian Skills Certificate (SKM) courses for Orang Asli development.
Deputy Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Abd Muttalib said the accreditation will enable the Orang Asli Civilisation Development Program (Program Pembangunan Tamadun Masyarakat Orang Asli or Petama) students to be recognised at the national stage compared to previously only at state level.
"The Petama programme was first introduced in 1998 with 700 Orang Asli students, and it has come a long way in attracting more Orang Asli students to join SKM. Many young Orang Asli have gone on to become successful.
"I believe the success of this programme is due to the proper planning by KYP and Yayasan Pahang, who had initiated the idea and acted as the main sponsor.
"We hope the accredition will see more parties come forward to sponsor Orang Asli students to further their studies in SKM courses here," he said.
He was speaking to journalists after launching SKM's accreditation for Petama and witnessing the Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony between KYP and Universiti Islam Malaysia and Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin here late this afternoon.
He said SKM, which is certified by the Department of Skills Development, has now been recognised in various industries and the public sector.
"Various benefits can be obtained from this certification especially to employers and trainees. Employers can secure competent manpower of high quality and competitiveness, while it would be easy for the trainees to focus on certain fields depending on job-employment and demand," he said.
Ismail said Petama plays an important role in training the young generation of Orang Asli to become leaders and Islamic preachers within their community.