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By Karen Bong
KUCHING, June 16: Premier of Sarawak Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg has agreed to allocate a site in Samarahan and contribute a portion of the cost for Sarawak Bumiputera Consulting Engineers Association to establish its own training centre for professional growth and development.
He acknowleged the need to provide Bumiputera engineers, consultants and contractors with a dedicated platform to enhance their knowledge, skills and capabilities, fostering innovation, technological exploration and find solutions.
“We must elevate our standards to effectively compete with international consultants. While we continue to improve ourselves, there is also a need to learn and embrace new technologies.
“The new training centre will be equipped with state-of-art technology and potentially including artificial intelligent (AI) so that you can find solutions and shape a promising future for the industry,” he said when addressing the Sarawak Bumiputera Consulting Engineers Association Anniversary Dinner and Engineers Awards 2023 at a hotel here tonight.
The Association had previously raised this matter during a courtesy call on the Premier on April 11.
Its chairman Ir Irwan Zulkarnain Muhammad Hasbie said that the centre of excellence will serve as a place to train members in engineering and technical skills to improve the quality of their sercives.
Additionally, Abang Johari also urged the association to actively encourage their members to explore new technologies in planning and implementation as Sarawak now emphasised on environmental sustainability and compliance with Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) principles.
“This means our buildings need to adhere to the Green Building Index (GBI) and our projects must prioritise sustainablity. Furthermore, projects aligned with ESG criteria may be eligible for loans from banks.
“Neglecting these vital components could affect implementation as the economy now places a significant emphasis on the environmental considerations,” he said in reminding the industry the need to embrace these principles for competitiveness.
Minister of Utility and Telecommunication Datuk Julaihi Narawi, Public Works Department (JKR) Sarawak director Ir Richard Tajan and Irwan were present at the event. — DayakDaily
