The Malaysian Employers Federation said MNCs would want employees who were fluent in English as they would be required to deal with their international clients.

MEF president Syed Hussain Syed Husman also said that the country’s economy was shifting more to the service sector and English was widely used in this industry.

“If we want to expand the economy and attract foreign investors, we need to make English a second language that Malaysians are fluent in.

“Otherwise, the MNCs will likely hire more expats to work here,” he told FMT.

English is a “must” for economic growth and to make the country more attractive to foreign investors, Syed Hussain added.

Untuk Malaysia, an NGO, recently revealed that close to 90,000 candidates who sat for last year’s SPM exam failed Mathematics while over 52,000 did not pass English. Both are core subjects.

Syed Hussain went on to suggest that students who failed the core subjects be given the opportunity to repeat the papers.

“Those who failed English and Mathematics should take extra classes or join companies that offer schemes to upskill their employees.”