Its minister, V Sivakumar, said the new initiative, known as Malaysia@Heart (MyHeart), will be under TalentCorp’s Returning Expert Programme (REP).

“The MyHeart initiative is a platform to connect with the Malaysian diaspora and work with them,” he said at the ministry here today.

He did not provide additional details, and FMT has reached out to the ministry’s communications team for more information.

TalentCorp, or Talent Corporation Malaysia Bhd, is the national agency under the ministry tasked with wooing Malaysian professionals back.

Last year, TalentCorp only attracted 5,774 Malaysians home through the REP, or 0.33% of the total number of those who emigrated.

Sivakumar also said the ministry plans to introduce the National Training Index (NTI) in an effort to upskill and reskill the labour force.

“The NTI will set standards for the industry as well as ensure that local talent receive training based on the needs of the industry,” he said.

He said the ministry will also continue to focus on the issue of forced labour, which has seen certain locally produced goods being banned overseas.

“We must collaborate strategically with countries like the US and the UK to empower initiatives and enforce laws to solve the issue of forced labour in the country,” he said.

Sivakumar also said the labour department (JTM) will re-evaluate courses that are being offered for technical and vocational education training (TVET) students to ensure there are no skills mismatch.

“The courses that are offered must also include elements of digitalisation and automation in line with the needs of the Industrial Revolution 4.0,” he said.