| Azaraimy HH |
THE Institute of Brunei Technical Education (IBTE) yesterday awarded a total of 1,776 graduates with diplomas and certificates at the 25th IBTE convocation ceremony held at the Chancellor Hall of Universiti Brunei Darussalam.
The ceremonies were divided into morning and afternoon sessions, with the morning session seeing a total of 1,012 graduates receiving their Brunei Darussalam Technical Vocational Education Council (BDTVEC) Diplomas, and Higher National Technical Education Certificates.
The afternoon session meanwhile saw 764 graduates receiving their National Technical Education Certificates, Industrial Skill Qualifications, BDTVEC Skill Certificates 2 and BDTVEC Skill Certificate 3.
Presenting the awards during the morning session was Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Suyoi bin Haji Osman, the Minister of Education.
Others present included permanent secretaries at the Ministry of Education, vice chancellors, rectors, senior government officers, as well as parents and guardians.
Speaking during the morning session, Dr Chin Wei Keh, Director of Technical Education and Chief Executive Officer of IBTE, highlighted that this year also saw 13 awards presented to graduates who have demonstrated excellence in their studies, not only academically, but also through their participation in co-curricular activities.
Dr Chin noted that technical education is an important component capable of generating a skilled workforce contributing towards national development, in both social and economic terms.
He added that in Brunei Darussalam, the quality of technical education will continue to develop, provided there is cooperation from all stakeholders. This is in reference to the call from His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam for the need to implement a “whole-of-nation approach” in this area and other aspects of Brunei’s development.
“This is to further improve the technical education system to generate graduates that are equipped with knowledge and skills, to become part of a skilled workforce capable of achieving the National Vision 2035,” he added.
Dr Chin also mentioned IBTE’s annual ‘Graduate Employment Study’, which is carried out six months after every convocation to study the status of IBTE graduates two years after they have completed their studies.
The IBTE CEO said the study has found that out of the 2,177 graduates in the year 2015, a total of 72 per cent have secured jobs. On a whole, the number of graduates who have found employment increased by four per cent.
The study also showed that the uncertainty of job environment was among the factors contributing to 14 per cent of the graduates no longer being in employment. The study also revealed that in general, the period for graduates to secure jobs from the point of graduation can be up to six months or more.
“Such data as revealed by the study are important to create strategies to ease the process of transition from school to work. Thus, the study was an effort by IBTE to find out the employment status of its graduates in the medium and longer term,” said Dr Chin.
He further added that to ensure technical education stays relevant and responsive to the needs of the country, IBTE has launched its Strategic Plan 2017-2018. The plan is a continuation of the institution’s Upgrading Plan for Technical Education Brunei Darussalam 2013-2018 (almost all of the initiatives under this programme have been implemented).
The Strategic Plan 2017-2018 will have six strategic pillars of technical education, with more focus towards the key goal of strengthening the quality of the training programmes offered and management processes.
Dr Chin also made note of the link and collaboration that exists between IBTE and the industry. “IBTE has established an ‘Industry Steering Committee’ that encompasses seven clusters: energy and engineering; business and financial services; hospitality and tourism; building construction, agrotechnology, Info-Communications Technology (ICT); and maritime,” he said.
The IBTE CEO also highlighted that IBTE actively collaborates with stakeholders and government agencies such as the Policy and Manpower Programme, JobCentre Brunei, Energy and Industry Department at the Prime Minister’s Office, Ministry of Communications, Ministry of Development, Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism, as well as the industry sector – especially in relation to the Industry Competency Framework or ICF.
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