KUALA LUMPUR: Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) has been urged to play its role as a public higher education institution to produce more professional and technical Bumiputera individuals.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said based on the data from the Statistics Department Malaysia, less than 51 per cent of Bumiputera have expertise in professional and technical fields.
He said UiTM was not just any public higher education institution under the Higher Education Ministry as its establishment aims at producing professionals and technocrats.
"The government hopes that UiTM can produce more Bumiputera who will pursue studies in professional and technical fields.
"Once, UiTM had a National Education Figure, Tun Arshad Ayub, who was very forward-thinking in vocational and technical education.
"And I also hope that such figures can be born within UiTM," he said when officiating the Karisma Pemikir Madani programme here today.
Also present was the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.
The programme, organised by the Malaysian National Academy in collaboration with UiTM, aims to empower UiTM's direction in line with the Malaysia Madani agenda and the appreciation of the Rukun Negara.