Through the training and skilling programme, Meraque will mould 500 youth by 2023
by TMR / pic by BERNAMA
MERAQUE Services Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian drone tech company has teamed up with the Malaysian Air Youth Club, Malaysian Youth Council and Tenggara Parliament Coordinating Office to cultivate young talent that will meet the demands of the growing drone industry in Malaysia.
In efforts to recruit youth with a career interest in the drone industry, a two-day Malaysian Young Generation Drone Technology Career Development Programme was kicked off yesterday. Through the training and skilling programme, Meraque will mould 500 youth by 2023, equipping them with the necessary skills sets to become industry-ready.
Meraque was named the 19th best drone technology service provider in the world last year by Drone Industry Insights, a Market Research consultant based in Germany, with plans for their expansion to Indonesia underway.
“With Malaysia’s ambitions to become a major player in the global drone industry as well as a potential drone hub in Asean, there is a pressing need to grow the number of skilled workers in the drone sector,” Meraque CEO Razali Ismail said in a statement yesterday.
“This career development programme is a catalytic step in ensuring a vibrant talent pool with the right skills required to propel this emergent industry. This programme symbolises Meraque’s commitment to be a company that pioneers human capital development in technology and manufacturing industries for local young talent in Tenggara,” he added.
Razali noted that the drone landscape is changing rapidly thus Malaysia needs to be prepared.
“We endeavour to enable the nation’s youth to adapt to this shift and reap benefits. The suppor to four partners and the government in this programme will help equip, support and enhance the capabilities of our youth through innovative drone courses and new-age skills, priming them for employment opportunities in the drone space locally as well as abroad. The syllabus will introduce the youth to the world of drones and train them in all aspects of the industry”, he added.
Aside from the recruitment drive, the programme featured a drone exhibition and an agro-drone demo. The programme’s corporate collaborators and government-linked companies also include Boustead Holdings Bhd Felcra Bhd, Kejora, FGV Holdings Bhd, Sime Darby Bhd, Edotco Froup Sdn Bhd, Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd and Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur.
The Malaysian Young Generation Drone Technology Career Development Programme was officiated by Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba who shared the importance of this initiative as Malaysia delves deeper into IR4.0.
“We are well aware that the application of drone technology is becoming widely used — from agriculture to medicine to logistics — delivering safer, cheaper and more efficient alternatives. The drone ecosystem is expected to witness exponential growth which will create a huge demand for talent with drone technology capabilities,” he said.
“I encourage the youth of Malaysia to seize this opportunity. Strive to increase knowledge and learn tech skills in new fields such as drones to increase your ability and competitiveness to drive the country’s progress. I hope that more corporations will band together with us to build our nation using sustainable technological solutions to support the nation’s commitment to the environmental, social and governance framework,” he added.
The drone industry has captured a steadily rising audience with the global drone market forecasted to achieve US$41.3 billion (RM173.46 billion) in 2026 according to the Drone Market Report 2021-2026.
In September 2021, the Malaysian government launched Area 57, a drone development zone, in Technology Park Malaysia in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur with three other drone development areas identified — Felda Mempaga in Pahang, Drone and Robotic Iskandar in Johor and Urban Delivery Drone in Cyberjaya.
