Kota Kinabalu: The State Government through the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (KSTI) is committed to advancing the field of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (Stem) in Sabah.
Its Minister, Datuk Dr Mohd Arifin Mohd Arif, said the effort is strengthened by increasing the number of Stem students at the school, university level and beyond, until their careers.
He said the rapid development of science and technology as well as the comprehensive development of the digital economy are the main challenges faced by the State government.
“We need not only students who have scientific knowledge, but also those who can apply their skills to solve big problems in the real world.
“Thus, Sabah needs many Stem experts in the future to advance the economy of this region and start by attracting the involvement of our children at the school level,” he said after officiating the Sabah Stem Eater Mini Staging Competition organized by the National Stem Association (NSA) at the Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS).
Also present were KSTI Permanent Secretary, Datuk Mohd Hanafiah Mohd Kassim, and NSA President, Emeritus Professor Datuk Dr Noraini Idris.
On the programme, Dr Mohd Arifin, who is also Education Exco, said KSTI will ensure that such programmes are held every year to increase students’ involvement in Stem.
He said KSTI will also identify a number of ministries that will help strengthen the programme in order to ensure the aspirations of the government are achieved.
“At the same time, I will also follow up on all the innovative works of students in the NSA programme to ensure they are patented and then commercialised,” he said.
Earlier, Sekolah Menengah Kebang-saan (SMK) Beaufort II emerged champion with their creative innovation product which defeated nine other schools in the competition.
