YAB Prime Minister Calls For Corporates To Show Leadership On Talent As Malaysia Readies To Chair ASEAN In 2015

Key highlights:

1. All listed companies are required to disclose their diversity policy for board, management and workforce in annual reports issued after 1 January 2015.
2. Corporate leaders to emulate best international practices in diversity and inclusion by disclosing the breakdown of their workforce in terms of gender, ethnicity and age.
3. Applications for five-year Multiple Entry Visas (MEV) will be available by December 2014 through the Expatriate Services Division of the Immigration Department.
4. Malaysia will launch the MY ASEAN Internship programme.
5. The SC is working closely with the professionals and industry on the adoption of Integrated Reporting.

KUALA LUMPUR, 26 August 2014 – The Prime Minister YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak has called on the private sector to show leadership in talent practices for Malaysia at the second edition of the Business Leaders Dialogue organised by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) and the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) today.

The inaugural Business Leaders Dialogue in April 2014 focused on the importance of corporate leaders to embrace diversity and strive of greater inclusiveness, especially at leadership and top management levels.

Reinforcing the importance of inclusiveness, YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib announced today that all listed companies are required to disclose their diversity policy for board, management and workforce in terms of gender, ethnicity and age in annual reports issued after 1 January 2015.

YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib also called on corporate leaders to emulate best international practices in diversity and inclusion by disclosing the breakdown of their workforce in terms of gender, ethnicity and age by management levels. To facilitate this, a good practice guide on Diversity & Inclusion disclosures was shared with attendees of today’s dialogue.

In view of Malaysia’s Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2015, the Dialogue today focused on how the private sector together with the Government can leverage on ASEAN’s high growth and strong foreign investment to realise the full potential of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) 2015.

ASEAN & Talent

Regional integration involves not only facilitating flows of financial capital but also mobility of human capital. The World Bank’s Malaysia Economic Monitor June 2014 reiterates the importance of focusing for 2015 on the implementation of agreements covering the movement of natural persons and mutual recognition agreements for professional qualifications.

To support the movement of business visitors, investors and fund managers, including those from beyond ASEAN such as India and China, YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib announced that applications for five-year Multiple Entry Visas (MEV) will be available for such investors and can be made at the Expatriate Services Division of the Immigration Department by December 2014.

To ensure opportunities in ASEAN are maximised at all levels of the community, a key pillar for Malaysia’s 2015 chairmanship is to promote a People Centred ASEAN. In line with this, YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib also announced that Malaysia will launch the MY ASEAN Internship programme to better engage the youth on opportunities arising out of the AEC.

Under this programme, in 2015, regional Malaysian champions will host Malaysian youth for internships in ASEAN countries and at the same time, host youth from ASEAN countries for internships here in Malaysia. Leading employers who have agreed to pioneer this initiative include CIMB, Maybank, Digi, Axiata, Nestle, Sunway, Sime Darby and the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC).

Given the importance of embedding a culture of sustainability within corporate Malaysia, the SC is working closely with companies and the professionals on the adoption of Integrated Reporting. In relation to this, YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib announced Sime Darby as the first Malaysian company to adopt Integrated Reporting by 2016.

The Business Leaders Dialogue was attended by 40 corporate leaders representing the country’s top Public Listed Companies (PLCs) and Government Linked Investment Companies (GLICs).

Also present at the event were the Ministers in the Prime Minister's Department YB Dato' Sri Abdul Wahid Omar and YB Dato' Sri Idris Jala; Education Minister II YB Dato’ Seri Idris Jusoh; SC Chairman Datuk Ranjit Ajit Singh; TalentCorp CEO Johan Mahmood Merican and senior government officials.