In his keynote address at the 2nd Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Human Capital Summit, the country’s fifth premier said the challenges included an increasing disparity in wealth, food security and massive youth unemployment amongst a host of others.

“However, these are also issues that can help us focus our attention, and should therefore also be viewed as opportunities for us to divert human resources and improve.”

He added that such challenges must be kept in mind when developing policies and plans for the nation’s future.

Abdullah also stressed the importance of human capital to the country, describing it as the nation’s life-blood.

He said it was especially crucial now as the country was moving away from a labour and resource based economy to one which was driven by new technologies and innovation.

He also said despite the government’s best efforts to introduce many policies to realise the high-income nation goal by 2020, Malaysia has been slipping in this area in recent years.

“Let me stress that investment in our human capital is essential in our modern and highly competitive environment.

“We must constantly adapt to the technological and cultural shifts happening around us.”