MY ASEAN Internship Programme: Future ASEAN Leaders

Photo (above): Leaders of pioneer companies posing with Mustapa (centre) and MITI secretary-general Datuk Dr Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria (7th from right)

The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) and Talent Corporation Malaysia (TalentCorp) have joined hands to create the MY ASEAN Internship programme.

Launched by the International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed on Jan 26, 2015, the MY ASEAN Internship programme aims to increase overall awareness of ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nations) among Malaysian youth.

The innovative programme will select 100 high-achieving students from Malaysian universities and place them as interns with leading employers at various ASEAN locations, while ASEAN students in Malaysian universities will intern in Malaysia.

MY ASEAN Internship aims to develop a regional talent pool and shape interns to become informal ambassadors to promote Malaysia and ASEAN to the world.

“MY ASEAN Internship provides our talent international exposure with employers who are regional champions in ASEAN,” said Johan Mahmood Merican, TalentCorp CEO.

“ASEAN is emerging as one of the world’s economic drivers. Home to some 600 million people, ASEAN’s population is twice the size of the United States. It is collectively the 7th largest economy in the world and the third largest in Asia. ASEAN has a young, smart and increasingly educated workforce, and its fast-moving economies are embracing change and modern technology. Simply put, ASEAN is proving itself more than ready to face the challenges of the modern world.” – Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, International Trade and Industry Minister

Mustapa engaging with students during the launch of MY ASEAN Internship

The objectives

MY ASEAN Internship programme was set up as part of the Government’s efforts to ensure that ASEAN engages and benefits Malaysian youth.

This unique internship programme works to engage the broader ASEAN community with clear and concrete goals to benefit the young interns, partner organisations and every ASEAN nation.

“The MY ASEAN Internship is a programme for Malaysian students to broaden their horizon as they will be working in an exciting and dynamic environment with a team of experienced professionals. The upcoming networking event hosted by UEM Group sets the stage for both undergraduates and employers to meet one another, and for students to discover the opportunity of a lifetime.” – Norlida Azmi, head of group human capital, UEM Group Bhd

On the lookout for regional leaders of tomorrow

MY ASEAN Internship programme is seeking high-achieving students and undergraduates motivated to excel in their fields and have an active interest in the regional landscape.

All internship permits will be facilitated via TalentCorp for both ASEAN nationals interning in Malaysia and for Malaysians in other ASEAN countries.

What’s in it for MY ASEAN interns

Beyond exposure to the ASEAN work sector and gaining international experience, MY ASEAN Internship offers excellent advantages for the interns:

• Become youth ambassadors of ASEAN
• Groomed to be Malaysia’s select group of future leaders
• Exposure to new markets and cultures
• Develop new sets of compatible skills
• Broaden your horizon: Participate in ASEAN-themed competitions and activities

“The ASEAN region currently has a lot of potential. It would be very beneficial for Malaysian youth to intern abroad, learn and bring that experience back to Malaysia.” – Datuk Gan Ah Tee, regional senior partner of BDO ASEAN and managing partner, BDO Malaysia

“You can get a local internship with a local experience, most people get that opportunity, but the overseas piece gives you exposure to different cultures, a different pace, a different environment, to get a more global perspective, much earlier in life.” – Vikram Cardozo, senior human resource director, GE ASEAN

The MY ASEAN Internship programme is an ideal way for us to identify and groom today’s entry level talent into the regional business leaders of tomorrow. Malaysian businesses with an ASEAN footprint will be able to leverage on these interns as brand ambassadors and champions in the various ASEAN destinations where they are based.” – Datin Badrunnisa Mohd Yasin Khan, Axiata Group chief talent officer

What Malaysian youth are saying

“I would encourage students to apply for MY ASEAN Internship because this is a lifetime opportunity. From this internship, they gain overseas experiences and are able to see things in different countries. As an intern in Maybank, the experience I gained was really impactful, because what they gave me prepared me well for my real working life.” – Lim Gian Yang, Global Maybank Apprentice

“I am applying for the internship to learn. I believe the experiences and lessons that I can bring back will be very meaningful.” – Shalini Palaniappan, BEng (Hons) Electrical & Electronics Engineering, Nilai University

Partnering organisations

The programme is supported by 14 leading organisations, from a cross section of sectors each having regional operations in one or more ASEAN countries.

Timeline

• Aug 7, 2014: MY ASEAN Internship was first proposed by Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed during the ASEAN Economic Community 2015 (AEC 2015) dialogue. This was done as a course of broadening perceptions of ASEAN, predominantly among Malaysian youth.
• Aug 26, 2014: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak officially announced the programme at the Business Leaders Dialogue organised by the Economic Planning Unit, the Securities Commission Malaysia and TalentCorp.
• Jan 2015: Launch of the MY ASEAN Internship by Mustapa.
• Feb 2015: Opens for applications by pioneer employers which include AirAsia, Axiata, BDO, CIMB, Digi, GE, Maybank, Nestle, Sime Darby, Sunway, Securities Commission Malaysia, UEM and ZICOlaw.
• Jul 2015: The 10-week internship programme will commence.

MY ASEAN Internship is open for applications. For more information on how to apply, visit www.ready4work.my/for-students/asean-internship

Related articles: MY ASEAN Internship: Grow with CIMB; MY ASEAN Internship: Opportunity To Intern With Digi

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Published in English daily The Star, Malaysia, 14 March 2015