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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia /
The New Straits Times / Current News / December 13, 2009
By Veena Babulal
An academic has urged the government to invest in educating retirees and senior citizens for jobs in the public sector.
Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris Pro Chancellor
Tan Sri Dr Yahaya Ibrahim said the talents of experienced hands were going to waste as education platforms were extremely limited to the elderly.
"There are many able-minded retirees who can contribute enormously to the nation but are just idling at home.
"The focus is, however, still on the young and the elderly are neglected.
"Most higher learning institutions neither offer nor promote courses to the group," Yahaya said at the launch of the Facon Education Fair at Putra World Trade Centre here yesterday.
He said the government must pick up where higher learning institutions had failed by giving a chance to senior citizens to extend their horizons.
Yahaya, who is also the organising chairman of the exhibition, said the government could offer civil servants who were about to retire scholarships, flexi hours, an extension of their tenure or even an appropriate redesignation. It also could re-hire retirees for advisory or training positions.
"If detractors argue that it is expensive to train old hens, then why do we have to spend so much money in training and re-training teachers without experience?" he queried.
Yahaya said about 80,000 people are expected to visit the fair which ends today.
About 80,000 people are expected to visit the two-day education fair which ends today. NST picture by Amran Hamid.
Four foreign government-funded groups of institutions will be explaining education options in Indonesia, Japan, the Netherlands and China. [
rc]
Copyright © 2009 NST
Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris Pro Chancellor Tan Sri Dr Yahaya Ibrahim said the talents of experienced hands were going to waste as education platforms were extremely limited to the elderly.
"There are many able-minded retirees who can contribute enormously to the nation but are just idling at home.
"The focus is, however, still on the young and the elderly are neglected.
"Most higher learning institutions neither offer nor promote courses to the group," Yahaya said at the launch of the Facon Education Fair at Putra World Trade Centre here yesterday.
He said the government must pick up where higher learning institutions had failed by giving a chance to senior citizens to extend their horizons.
Yahaya, who is also the organising chairman of the exhibition, said the government could offer civil servants who were about to retire scholarships, flexi hours, an extension of their tenure or even an appropriate redesignation. It also could re-hire retirees for advisory or training positions.
"If detractors argue that it is expensive to train old hens, then why do we have to spend so much money in training and re-training teachers without experience?" he queried.
Yahaya said about 80,000 people are expected to visit the fair which ends today.
About 80,000 people are expected to visit the two-day education fair which ends today. NST picture by Amran Hamid.
Four foreign government-funded groups of institutions will be explaining education options in Indonesia, Japan, the Netherlands and China. [rc]
Copyright © 2009 NST
