PENANG took the lead in terms of economic growth in 2006, achieving a 9.9 per cent expansion in gross domestic product (GDP). The growth was led by the manufacturing sector, which provided more than 50 per cent to total GDP for the state. Read here and here

Nevertheless, the recent weeks saw the state government turning down a multibillion-dollar foreign investment as it could not commit to the specialised human resources requested. Read here. The failure to commit received myriad reactions and counter reactions from many quarters.

• Gerakan slammed CM Lim Guan Eng for rejecting the investment on a “flimsy excuse”. The party felt that the CM should have spoken to the Human Resources Ministry and the Institute of Engineers (IEM) before coming to such a conclusion. “The institute has said that it has at least 25,000 members and each year, our public and private universities produce at least 6,000 engineering graduates," said its economic bureau head. Read here
• The state government responded that it could incur losses as much as US$3bil to compensate the investors should it be unable to fulfil its own guarantees. It did not want to have a “promise first hope later” attitude. Read here
• Meanwhile, the federal government, first puzzled over the news of the shortage, offered to help Penang to identify a ready pool of engineers who can be sourced by potential investors. There were 18,000 engineers registered with the ministry. Read here. The state, however, asserted that while engineers of every kind were registered, there was a scarcity of the electronics and electrical (E&E) engineers required. Jeffrey Chew, the CM's special investment officer stated that the ministry “should realise that 18,000 engineers does not mean 18,000 E&E engineers, but also include civil, mechanical, materials and other engineering disciplines”.  He also suggested that the ministry concentrate on overcoming this shortage and not confuse this matter further. Read here

This state of affairs has again brought forth the ongoing brain drain dilemma in Penang and Malaysia. Not being able to produce sufficient engineers to meet the needs of the technology sector, could then undermine the country’s competitive edge as a destination for foreign direct investments. Read here and here

Other news

• Swettenham International Ship Terminal to boost state economy: The official opening of the new international passenger ship terminal at the Swettenham Pier International Cruise Terminal in February is expected to attract more tourists to Penang and thereby boost the state economy. Read here
• Penang Umno Youth tells Lim to resign: Penang Umno Youth has urged Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng to resign for "not doing what he claimed." Read here
• 2,000 new bosses yearly: About 2,000 new employers register with the Social Security Organisation (Socso) in Penang every year. Read here
• Symmetry Medical to invest RM35 million to expand Penang operation: Symmetry Medical Inc, which provides products to the global orthopaedic device industry and other medical markets, is ready to invest about RM35 million (US$10 million) over the next two years to expand its Penang plant. Read here
• The spirit of jazz: Six years into the fray and the Penang Island Jazz Festival seems to be getting more popular. Starting Dec 3, the sixth edition of Malaysia’s best loved jazz gathering kicks into high gear, offering a four-day extravaganza. Read here
• A record of sorts: The 20-storey pavilion constructed to shelter the Goddess of Mercy (Kuan Yin) statue at the Kek Lok Si Temple in Air Itam may be listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the tallest pavilion in the world. Read here

Comments (0)

Show/Hide comments

Show/Hide comment form