KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians must be aware that science and technology is the foundation and the backbone behind the rise of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) said Datuk Wilfred Marius Tangau.
The Science, Technology and Innovation Minister said this in his address at the Asean 2050 forum on the ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution'.
"In Professor Klaus Schwab's (founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum) book on the 4IR, we were told this revolution would be fundamentally different from the previous three and characterised by the advances and convergence of technology.
Acknowledging the acceleration of change that is happening in the 4IR and with rapid disruption to industries globally, Wilfred said there is a need to invest in nurturing the workforce of the future.
"The workforce in 2050 will be made up of today's Generation Z and Generation Alpha.
"Young people are open to change and are prepared to embrace the idea of on-demand learning and personal flexibility but they must be properly facilitated and nurtured.
"Most to the jobs awaiting them have yet to exist. When they enter the workforce, spatial cognition, robotics and artificial intelligence would be common place," he said.
He added harnessing these talents is important, as technology is a defining factor of the Generation Z and Alpha.
"Malaysia is currently embarking on our National Transformation 2050 (TN50) initiative, to plan for the future of the country in the 2020 to 2050 period.
"In order to develop this 30 years plan, we are trying to do it differently. We will be developing it using the bottom up approach, that the government is here to listen to the people's aspiration and to prepare the country and the future in order to achieve them," he said.
Wilfred added that Generation Alpha has been predicted to be the most formally educated generation, the most technology supplied generation, and with the greatest wealth at their disposal.
"The world has started to shift from the traditional economy to the new economy and is no longer dependent on resources but on knowledge.
"The key is in developing creative thinking skills and applying to problem solving and innovation.
"Particularly talents must be developed in areas such as science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
Wilfred had in closing said he hopes Asean member countries could also share their vision towards 2050.
"This can be a basis to shape Asean's long term vision beyond 2025. In this spirit, I hope we can form an Asean Foresight Alliance to spearhead this initiative.
"The future potential is significant. If we get it right, Asean will have a bright future, but to achieve it, we must strengthen leadership" he said.
