Malaysia’s graduate unemployment rate in 2018 fell slightly to 3.9% from 4% in 2017, with a total of 162,000 unemployed graduates. NCER alone recorded 14,300 unemployed graduates, with Perak and Perlis recording the highest percentage rate.

NTEP is specially-tailored to enhance the employability of local graduates and provide them with job opportunities and better quality of life, as well as ensure a sufficient skilled workforce that matches the industry requirements within NCER. Through this programme, participants will receive high-quality work skills training, followed by soft skills training to enhance their competitiveness, thus providing direct employment opportunities to the local graduates.

NTEP Programme Beneficieries

NTEP is open to all local and foreign companies that are investing or expanding in NCER. The companies will be given a subsidy of RM1,000 per graduate for a period of 12 months, or RM12,000 per graduate in total. The NTEP subsidy is meant to encourage companies to employ fresh graduates and provide them with adequate training, in lieu of hiring experienced personnel or foreign knowledge workers.

One of the conditions that have to be met by companies is that they must offer a minimum monthly salary of RM2,500 to the graduates. The firms are encouraged to recruit graduates who have been unemployed within two years upon their graduation. They are also advised to recruit more STEM-related graduates and at least 30% female participants under NTEP. Among the participating companies for NTEP are Penang-based Micron Memory Malaysia Sdn Bhd, ViTrox Corporation Berhad and Oppstar Technology.