KUALA LUMPUR, April 12 — The Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) today announced the launch of the #SayaDigital movement — an initiative aimed at increasing digital literacy among the B40 group, youths, senior citizens and socio-economically vulnerable groups nationwide.
The movement, launched at the People’s Housing Project (PPR) Hiliran Ampang and officiated by Communications and Multimedia Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Mohammad Mentek, is said to be fully aligned with the country’s economic recovery plan, as well as provide strong support to the Malaysian Digital Economy Blueprint (MyDIGITAL) that Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced February this year.
“According to the World Digital Competitiveness Index 2020 report, Malaysia is ranked 26th and second best among the Asean countries, while the World Economic Forum (WEF) has placed our country in the 34th position in the Network Readiness Report 2020. This achievement will absolutely add value and inject the spirit of togetherness between the government and rakyat to form a stronghold that supports each other to make MyDIGITAL a success.
“Nevertheless, we should not be complacent as continuous efforts and initiatives need to be implemented as the digital technology sector in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) era rapidly changes on a daily basis. In this regard, MDEC’s move to launch #SayaDigital to vulnerable groups is timely as our country strives to achieve its ambition of becoming a major regional digital economy market.
“This is in line with the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 (SPV 2030), an initiative that will not maginalise any groups of people,” said the Prime Minister in a speech delivered virtually.
The #SayaDigital programme would focus on four main components, namely training the youth to become “Geng #SayaDigital volunteers, creating awareness through digital literacy activities, conducting digital readiness assessments and providing basic digital skills training to the community.
MDEC has also designed 12 adaptations and digital literacy programmes with 2,000 participants expected to participate in these programmes, guided by 100 volunteers known as “Geng #SayaDigital” ambassadors.
The programme will also include three main teaching modules — digital communication, internet banking and e-wallet, and digital service applications that are used in other countries.
Chairman of MDEC Datuk Rais Hussin Mohamed Ariff said that the goals outlined in MyDIGITAL are based on the confidence that they can empower Malaysians to face challenges the new norm has brought about head on.
“After all, the goal is to create a technology-integrated society through Malaysia 5.0. Equipping people with digital infrastructure and the digitally-skilled workforce that acts as the backbone for a sustainable digital ecosystem in Malaysia.
“This advantage will, in turn, be the main driver for the growth of the digital econony in the future,” he said.
Surina Shukri, CEO of MDEC, said that individuals with efficient digital skill are greatly needed in driving forward the digital economy during this pandemic.
She said that a study by MDEC showed that there are currently 47,000 digital job opportunities advertised on major job search portals in Malaysia.
“This shows that the country’s digital-skilled labour market remains competitive amid these challenging times. It also provides a sign of the country’s digital economic growth.
“In this regard, MDEC’s #SayaDigital is a timely effort that will get more people to learn digital skills. Initiatives to empower Malaysians are crucial for their digital journey as we move closer to achieve the goal of making Malaysia the Digital Heart of Asean,” she said.
The #SayaDigital campaign kick-started last year as MDEC’s effort to support Malaysians and local businessses to step up digitalisation measures that will help reduce socio-economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Through the campaign, MDEC introduced several initiatives such as the SME Digital Summit and the Gig and Freelance Expo (GFX) as high impact engagements for those who want to improve their skills as well as for young individuals entering the workforce.
Source: https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2021/04/12/mdec-launches-sayadigital-movement-to-accelerate-digitalisation-in-the-coun/1965820