‘Your country is proud of you’, Anwar tells 22 Malaysians competing at WorldSkills Shanghai

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim commended Malaysia's 22 young competitors at the 48th WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai, emphasizing their role as the country's pride and the importance of skilled workers in a modern, technology-driven economy.

He highlighted that young skilled workers are essential to maintaining and advancing sophisticated machinery and software systems.

Anwar also encouraged youth participation in technical professions, underlining that clear career prospects and better livelihoods would attract them, ultimately contributing to economic progress and fostering societal improvement.

During his three-day visit to China, Anwar outlined the significant impact of youth in championing social justice and addressing wealth inequality.

SHANGHAI, Sept 23 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has hailed Malaysia’s 22 young competitors at the 48th WorldSkills Competition here as the country’s pride, stressing that skilled workers are indispensable to a modern, technology-driven economy.

“You have spent years practising something difficult until you could do it well. Whatever the result this week, your country is proud of you.

“Your participation here lets Malaysia test itself against the best in the world. It shows us how our standards compare and where we can improve,” he said at the plenary session of the WorldSkills Shanghai 2026 Conference and Expo here today.

Malaysia is represented by 22 young competitors across 21 skill areas at the competition, which brings together about 1,400 young professionals from more than 65 countries and regions, marking the country’s continued participation in the event since 1995.

Touching on youth’s role in the economy, Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister, said young skilled workers play a crucial role in keeping modern economies running, even as machinery and software become increasingly sophisticated.

“A modern economy cannot function without the technicians who keep a semiconductor line running or an electric vehicle plant on schedule.

“The machinery may become more sophisticated. The software may become more intelligent. But somebody still has to understand how it works and know what to do when it does not,” he said.

Anwar said young people would be drawn to technical and skilled professions if they could see clear prospects for career advancement and better livelihoods.

“Our task is to make sure that it leads somewhere worth going: to skilled work and good incomes. Skill of that depth is built slowly,” said the Prime Minister.

Citing an old Chinese saying that it takes 10 years to grow a tree but 100 years to cultivate a person, Anwar said the energy and dynamism of young people were pivotal to economic progress, and that society must move beyond viewing youth merely as contributors to material and economic advancement.

“There isn’t any doubt that the energy and vibrancy of young people contributes substantively to high productivity in this pursuit of material wealth,” he said.

Anwar said young people also make significant contributions to society, including by championing social justice, addressing wealth inequalities and pushing for poverty eradication.

“Thanks to the young people, the drive to foster societal improvement, demand for social justice, ending the inequities of wealth, and pushing for poverty eradication. These are paramount.

“A country can attract capital. It can acquire technology. It still needs people who know how to make that technology work and make it better,” said Anwar.

The prime minister arrived here on Tuesday for a three-day working visit to Shanghai and Hangzhou. — Bernama

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马来西亚总理拿督斯里安华·易卜拉欣在上海举行的第48届世界技能大赛上赞扬了马来西亚的22名年轻参赛者，强调他们是国家的骄傲，并强调了技术工人在现代科技驱动型经济中的重要性。

他强调，年轻的技术工人对于维护和改进复杂的机械和软件系统至关重要。

安华还鼓励青年参与技术职业，强调清晰的职业前景和更好的生活将吸引他们，最终促进经济进步和社会改善。

在为期三天的访华期间，安瓦尔概述了青年在倡导社会正义和解决财富不平等问题上发挥的重要作用。

上海，9月23日——马来西亚总理拿督斯里安华·易卜拉欣称赞参加第48届世界技能大赛的22名马来西亚年轻选手是国家的骄傲，并强调技术工人对于现代科技驱动型经济不可或缺。

“你花了数年时间练习一项难度很高的技能，直到能够熟练掌握。无论本周结果如何，你的国家都为你感到骄傲。”

“你们的参与让马来西亚有机会与世界一流水平的队伍一较高下。这让我们看到我们的水平与世界一流水平的差距，以及我们可以在哪些方面改进，”他今天在上海举行的2026年世界技能大赛大会暨展览会全体会议上说道。

马来西亚派出 22 名年轻选手参加 21 个技能领域的比赛，该比赛汇聚了来自 65 多个国家和地区的约 1400 名年轻专业人士，标志着马来西亚自 1995 年以来一直参加该赛事。

安华同时也是财政部长，他在谈到青年在经济中的作用时表示，即使机械和软件变得越来越复杂，年轻的技术工人在维持现代经济运转方面也发挥着至关重要的作用。

“如果没有技术人员保证半导体生产线正常运转或电动汽车工厂按计划生产，现代经济就无法运转。”

他说：“机器设备可能会变得越来越精密，软件可能会变得越来越智能，但仍然需要有人了解它们的工作原理，并且知道当它们出现故障时该怎么办。”

安华表示，如果年轻人能够看到明确的职业晋升前景和更好的生活条件，他们就会被技术和技能型职业所吸引。

“我们的任务是确保它能带来值得追求的目标：技术性工作和丰厚的收入。这种深度的技能是慢慢培养起来的，”总理说道。

安华引用一句中国古语说，种一棵树需要十年，培养一个人需要百年，他说，年轻人的活力和干劲对经济进步至关重要，社会必须超越仅仅将年轻人视为物质和经济进步贡献者的观念。

“毫无疑问，年轻人的活力和热情对追求物质财富的高生产力做出了实质性贡献，”他说。

安华表示，年轻人也为社会做出了重大贡献，包括倡导社会正义、解决财富不平等问题以及推动消除贫困。

“感谢年轻人，他们推动社会进步，要求社会正义，消除财富不均，并努力消除贫困。这些至关重要。”

安瓦尔说：“一个国家可以吸引资本，可以获取技术，但它仍然需要懂得如何运用这些技术并使其变得更好的人。”

总理周二抵达这里，开始对上海和杭州进行为期三天的访问。——马新社

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