Month: June 2022

KUALA LUMPUR, June 20 (Bernama) — Youths should gain new insights and skills to prepare for the competitive job market as academic performance is not the only factor that determines employability, said Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Noraini Ahmad.

She said employers seek candidates with knowledge and skills that are relevant to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, ranging from digital literacy to soft skills.

“The completion of your degree is not the end of learning…Always make the effort to reskill and upskill yourselves,” she said when officiating the Kuala Lumpur Global Youth Summit (KLGYS) 2022 here today.

Noraini said the world today is fast-paced and the young generation needs to be agile to succeed.

A total of 450 local participants as well as youths from several countries including Belgium, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia and Zambia attended the one-day KLGYS summit which was conducted physically and through online platforms.

Twenty-nine international speakers shared their experience in seven sessions, covering various issues such as pursuing a career in entertainment, the value of digital assets, understanding mental health and ways to tap into individual strengths.

Hosted by Yayasan Juwita together with the Ministry of Higher Education and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, KLGYS 2022 aimed at engaging young adults with local and international industry leaders.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

SUNGAI PETANI, June 20 (Bernama) — The Kedah Veterinary Department today unveiled new durian varieties known as D216 (J. Sparrow) and D217 (Jerai) which were planted at a durian orchard in Kampung Ketapang, Sungai Tok Pawang, Bedong near here.

State Agriculture and Food Industries, Plantation Industries and Commodities, Transport and Indian Community Affairs chairman Datuk Azman Nasrudin said the durian clones would be new products for durian aficionados in the country.

“We are offering a new durian variety that is expected to get good demand, the D216 and D217 clone varieties have their own unique taste and shape that is expected to be in high demand from durian lovers,” he said.

Azman said this during a press conference after launching the durian clones at a durian orchard near here today. Kedah Agriculture director, Ramli Abdul Rahman and the entrepreneur of the new durian varieties Teoh Seng Khoon were also present.

Commenting further, Azman said that among the characteristics of the J. Sparrow durian is that the main colour of the flesh is light yellow-brown with a moderate aroma while its average sweetness is 35.3 per cent Brix (sugar content of an aqueous solution) with moderate bitterness.

“Meanwhile the main color of the flesh of Durian Jerai is light yellow and it has a strong aroma, the average sweetness is 35 per cent Brix with moderate bitterness. It has a medium rough texture and a strong creamy taste,” he said.

Azman said he hoped the planters of the durian variety would be able to plant more of such durian trees so that the new variety could become prevalent in the market. At present, there are seven J. Sparrow durian trees planted with another 10 for the Jerai variety.

Meanwhile, Teoh said the public could come to the durian orchard to taste the two durian clones as the varieties were not yet sold in the open market.

He added that the J Sparrow is being sold at between RM35 and RM45 per kg, and the Jerai variant at RM20 to RM35 per kg.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA NERANG, June 20 (Bernama) — The Rural Development Ministry (KPLB) is preparing a working paper on the proposal to raise the living allowance of students sponsored by Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) in the United Kingdom (UK).

Its minister, Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid said the working paper would be submitted to the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and the Finance Ministry soon for approval.

“I have met with the sponsored students, and many of them have requested that their daily allowance be increased slightly as the cost of living in UK is rising especially utilities such as electricity, water, gas public transport and house rental.

“I will be completing the paper to be forwarded to the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and the Finance Ministry,” he said when met after opening the 48th Parent-Teacher Association meeting of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Dato’ Syed Ahmad, here today.

He was asked to comment on his working visit to UK, among others to meet MARA-sponsored students studying there last week.

Meanwhile, Mahdzir said Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) is forging collaboration with the Institution of Railway Signal Engineers (IRSE), an international licensing body based in UK, relating to railway transport signaling control system.

He said the cooperation was discussed between the ministry and IRSE in his visit aimed at assisting UniKL to offer a related course for its students.

“We have a railway faculty at UniKL in Kuala Lumpur, but we are new so we need to collaborate. We (UniKL) also discussed with a university to cooperate with UniKL in the field of aerospace.

“We are asking the university to collaborate with the Institute of Aviation Technology of UniKL to enable our institute improve the quality of our students,” he said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

ALOR SETAR, June 20 (Bernama) — Eighteen people have been evacuated after a heavy downpour caused floods in Mukim Selama, Bandar Baharu district, near Kulim, today.

Bandar Baharu district Disaster Management Committee spokesman Lt (PA) Abdul Rahim Khairuddin said the victims from four families were moved to Dewan Keda Sungai Tengas at 8 pm.

“A heavy downpour lasting more than two hours from 2 pm caused a river to burst its banks and flood several houses in Mukim Selama, Mukim Relau and Mukim Sungai Batu.

“However, so far only one relief centre was opened in Mukim Selama although several houses in Kampung Paya Semambu and Kampung Kilang Batu in Mukim Relau and Kampung Sungai Tengas Ilir in Mukim Sungai Batu were also affected,” he said in a statement tonight.

He said the affected villages in Mukim Selama were Kampung Sungai Hitam Dalam, Kampung Sungai Hitam Luar, Kampung Sungai Tengas and Kampung Terap Dalam.

He said all together 83 people from 25 families in the three mukims were affected by the floods.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

PUTRAJAYA, June 20 (Bernama) — An Ocean Infinity top executive held a meeting with Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong here today, as the marine robotics company shared its readiness to resume the search operation for the ill-fated Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 based on a “no cure, no fee” deal.

In a Facebook post, Wee said he had a meeting with Ocean Infinity chief executive officer Oliver Plunkett and representatives of the next of kin of MH370 victims at his office here, where Plunkett gave an update on the company’s latest advances in technology, human talent, and capabilities compared to five years ago.

“He (Plunkett) shared Ocean Infinity readiness to resume the search operation of MH370 plane based on a “no cure, no fee” deal, whereby payment is made only if the company finds the wreckage,” said Wee.

Wee said he had instructed Transport Ministry (MOT) officers to obtain further information from Ocean Infinity for deliberation before consulting on further decisions with the governments of Australia and China.

On March 8, 2014, the Malaysia Airlines aircraft MH370 with 239 people on board left Kuala Lumpur International Airport for Beijing but vanished from the radar screen about two hours after its departure.

Since then, several countries had launched large-scale search operations in the southern Indian Ocean but found no plane nor wreckage.

In October 2017, the Malaysian government released a statement that it was in discussion with Ocean Infinity to make a further underwater search in the area, on the basis of no fee if the wreckage was not found.

The search started in January 2018 and ended in June 2018 without finding the aircraft.

Wee said it was reiterated in the meeting that there must be new credible evidence before it could proceed with another search operation.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUCHING, June 20 (Bernama) — The nut found inside the seed of a ‘dabai’ – a seasonal exotic fruit in Sarawak – which is said to taste as good as pistachio, can be promoted as another indigenous product from the state, says Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas.

He said prior to this, dabai was only known for its creamy yellowish flesh and the seeds that contained the edible nuts were usually discarded.

“The nuts (from the seeds of the dabai fruit) are edible and taste as good as pistachios and if fully harnessed, it can be an innovation that can be enhanced to be another product,” he told reporters when visiting the Gawai Festival Bazaar here tonight.

He said the bazaar organised by the Kuching South City Council (MBKS) at the Dewan MBKS grounds was among the platforms to promote authentic Sarawakian food besides providing opportunities for Dayak entrepreneurs to generate income.

“Presenting varieties and unique products, this bazaar can also attract many people to come, not only locals but also people from the Peninsular as well as foreign tourists,” he added.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency