USM expertise to help OKU

PENANG, 19 July – The expertise of Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) academia will be utilized to help people with special neeeds (OKU) in the field of economics.

Some of the interesting moments at the launching of the Seminar on Strengthening the Economic Position of People with Special Needs, which was graced by Dato' Seri Shahrizat, here today.

Women, Family and Community Minister, Dato’ Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil said that the skills and exper tise of professors from institutions of higher learning is required to help the ministry to strengthen the economic position of those with special needs.

According to Dato’ Seri Shahrizat, some of the issues that will be emphasized in this special programme will include specific training to enhance the achievement of the OKU in the economic sector, including the provision of grants for financial assistance for business ventures.

“We will implement this in a systematic and innovative way. As such, the expertise and experience of USM academia is greatly needed in helping the Ministry ensure the success of this mission. In addition, USM is the only university that will be collaborating with the Ministry in this matter,” she told reporters at a press conference after launching the ‘Seminar Memperkasakan Ekonomi Orang Kelainan Upaya (OKU)’ [‘Seminar on Strengthening the Economic Position of People with Special Needs]’here today.

Dato’ Seri Shahrizat added that the seminar, which is also a pilot programme undertaken by the ministry with the cooperation of several other parties including USM, is aimed at enhancing the achievements and competency standards of the OKU.

She explained that through the seminar, the parties involved will be able to see the true potential of the OKU to generate income and prepare specific modules that can be used to meed the needs of OKU who have different competencies.

“The process to develop the competitive spirit of the OKU cannot focus only on one module per se. There has to be variations in adapting it to meet the different requirements of the OKU involved. We have to use scientific and holistic management methods to see how truly effective it is in determining the developmental patterns of their competencies,” she said.

Published: 28 Jul 2010

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