2nd MISC-WD ICT Retreat

The Manpower Industry Steering Committee Working Group for ICT Sector (MISC-WG ICT) successfully concluded its second retreat on Tuesday, 30 April 2024. The retreat was initiated and facilitated by the Authority for Info-communications Technology Industry of Brunei Darussalam (AITI) as the Secretariat of the MISC-WG ICT.  

The half-day event, held in Bandar Seri Begawan, aimed to improve the overall outcome from the MISC-WG ICT by discussing the lessons learnt and the challenges faced for improvements acknowledging the manpower issues faced by the ICT sector and addressing this by identifying future programmes of MISC-WG ICT that will be in line with the needs and future demand of manpower. 

Attending the event were Ir. Haji Jailani bin Haji Buntar, Chief Executive of AITI; and Pengiran Sarimah binti Pengiran Hj Abdul Latiff, Chairperson of InfoCom Federation Brunei (IFB), as co-leads of MISC-WG ICT. A total of nineteen (19) members from the government, industry, institutes of higher learning and training providers participated in the retreat.  

Since its inception in August 2020, the MISC-WG ICT has diligently pursued its mandate given by the Manpower Industry Steering Committee (MISC) under the Pejabat Perancangan Tenaga Manusia (PPTM), focusing on understanding job demands within the MISC sectors, identifying critical occupations, and collaborating with industry stakeholders to develop critical job competencies.  

Looking forward, MISC-WG ICT aims to increase the number of talented local graduates and career development in Brunei Darussalam. Recognising the pressing need to bridge manpower supply and demand, the Group aims to re-strategise and develop more collaborative strategies to amplify the impact of its initiatives. Notably, initiatives like Coding.bn, the first Brunei coding academy, have yielded promising results, where 75% of the participants were successfully hired in various IT positions for Cohort 1 and 58% for Cohort 2.  

Concluding the retreat, MISC-WG ICT identified several new programmes and projects for development and execution in the coming years. With a steadfast commitment to addressing unemployment and skill gaps in the local ICT sector, MISC-WG ICT is dedicated to the continuous enhancement of digital and ICT programmes for the benefit of local talents in Brunei Darussalam.

For further information, interested parties and agencies may contact the Secretariat at misc-ict@aiti.gov.bn.