The BND20 million annual budget allocated for i-Ready is not solely for the i-Ready programme, but also covers other schemes such as accountancy trade skills pro-grammes, TVET schemes and related initiatives. For i-Ready specifically, the allocation is approximately BND10 million per year.

Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy Il Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah said this responding to matters raised by Legislative Council (LegCo) members at the First Meeting of the 22nd Session of the Legislative Council yesterday.

On Job Centre matters, the minister noted that the intake of around 3,000 participants’ annually is specifically through Job Centre Brunei and does not represent the entire national figure. Based on statistics over the past seven years, the average annual intake is about 12,000 individuals.

This includes graduates from universities and polytechnics, as well as school dropouts and individuals who have resigned from their jobs. Overall, the number entering the workforce each year is roughly 11,000 to 12,000, and this is generally offset by a similar number of job placements annual intake is about 12,000 individuals.

This balance helps explain why the unemployment rate has remained relatively stable at around 4.95 per cent.

To address unemployment more effectively, the Prime Minister’s Office has appointed the Centre for Strategic and Policy Studies (SPS) to conduct a study identifying the root causes of unemployment.

These include issues such as qualification mismatches, transportation challenges, and other contributing factors. The aim is to develop targeted solutions rather than general approaches.

On i-Ready matters, he noted that the primary objective of the i-Ready programme is to provide participants with work experience, rather than to guarantee employment.

While participation improves employability, and it does not necessarily ensure immediate job placement after completion of the apprenticeship period.

After completing the pro-gramme, participants are encouraged to update their employment status through the Job Centre portal and remain in contact with officers for job matching and new opportunities.

For those who have not yet secured employment, continued support is provided through job matching services, career guidance and coaching.

This, he added, allows for objective, evidence-based assessments while identifying participants’ skill gaps.

Job Centre is working closely with the Manpower Planning Office to develop a more structured competency framework.

(news source: Borneo Bulletin; pic source: Info Foto, Jabatan Penerangan)