Ubaidillah Masli
BRUNEI-MUARA
Monday, April 30, 2012
OVER 400 locals have secured employment in the oil and gas industry following the two job fairs the Energy Department at the Prime Minister's Office (EDPMO) has organised to meet a year-end target of recruiting 1,000 jobseekers into an industry dominated by foreign workers.
This result, however, was recorded despite half of the companies that participated in the first fair late last year having yet to relay back to the government on the success of their recruitment drives.
At a launching of a website on Local Business and Employment Development (LBED) on Wednesday last week, it was disclosed that "about 414 locals have secured jobs with the various service companies" that participated in the first Oil and Gas Job Fair in December 2011.
"You have done a service to Brunei and also to the individuals who can earn a living for themselves," said EDPMO Permanent Secretary (Downstream and Power) Hj Jamain Hj Julaihi on behalf of energy minister Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Singamanteri Colonel (Rtd) Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Hj Mohd Yasmin Hj Umar.
"...I have stated that the target is to achieve 1,000 jobs by end of this year and I am confident that with your continuous support, there is no reason why we cannot achieve this together," he added.
While praising the companies that have complied with the EDPMO's initiatives on one end, the energy minister also warned those that did not, building on criticisms he has made in recent times on the composition of local to foreign workers employed in the industry.
"Despite our (EDPMO's) efforts to contact the service companies several times, it is a disappointment that from the over 70 companies that had participated in the job fair, to date, only about 35 companies have reverted back on the status of their recruitment drives, while the rest have not made any submission, even if just to inform that there was no recruitment made so far."
Pehin Dato Hj Mohd Yasmin questioned whether this was because some companies were "not bothered" to do so.
"If you are the latter, I want to remind you that this is not acceptable, and EDPMO will continue to monitor and take appropriate actions where deemed necessary."
The EDPMO is pushing to produce 5,000 professional and 35 skilled and semi-skilled Bruneian workers for the energy sector, with a target of 80 per cent local employment by the time the country realises its national Vision 2035.
Companies in the industry currently have around 20 to 40 per cent of the workforce Bruneians, the energy minister said in a previous interview before the Local Business Development (LBD) Framework in the industry regulator's "Directive No 2" was introduced.
The directive, issued in February, makes it mandatory for businesses to have at least half of their employees who are Bruneians if they want to compete in an industry tender. A target of a 70 per cent increase in "local participation" has been set over five years.
On Saturday, the minister called on the private sector to establish a local training facility for the shipping industry.
Seafarers were currently trained abroad, said the minister, adding that "it is about time that we have a shipping training institution of our own".
The proposed training facility should be run and owned by the private sector and not by government-linked companies, he said during a signing ceremony for a new LNG vessel for the 80-per cent government-owned Brunei Gas Carriers Sdn Bhd (BGC) on Saturday.
"It must be managed as a commercial body, applying internationally-recognised standards for the shipping industry.
"What we want is to produce Brunei seafarers of qualities that are able to meet not just the local shipping requirements but (are) also marketable globally.
YB Pehin Dato Hj Mohd Yasmin said that as the country expects greater activity, particularly offshore, in the oil and gas sector, more support and supply vessels would be needed.
"Add to this, the demand from the other FDI (foreign direct investment) projects currently in line for implementation, ie in exporting their products; the demand for local ships and seafarers will also increase," he said.
Dipetik dari - The Brunei Times
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