Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan

Dato’ Madinah MohammadSTUDYING overseas has always been a dream for many schoolchildren. The number of students sent overseas by the Governmenthas increased significantly. One of them was Jamilah, a very brightstudent. On returning home, she found that jobs did not abound inMalaysia.Frustrated, she sought ways to return to Britain to further her studies.There were a number of scholarships she could take advantage of. She secured ascholarship and pursued a Master’s degree. She left for Britain and did not returnhome. Twenty years on, she is still working in Britain. She has since moved to othercompanies over the years and is now heavilyinvolved in research and development. Shereturns home for her yearly pilgrimage to The majority of thevisit her aging parents and family.Married with children, she even gave upher Malaysian citizenship to enable her toreceive all that Britain could offer. But shenow wants to return to Malaysia.This story can be repeated with David, Jane,Muthu, Zamani and many more who leaveour shores for better opportunities andquality of life.This is the classic cycle of how brain drainstarts – the quest for better employment,better salaries, better working environmentand generally, a better quality of life.The majority of the Malaysian diaspora residein Singapore, the United States, Australia,New Zealand, Britain and Canada.Malaysian diaspora residein Singapore, the UnitedStates, Australia, NewZealand, Britain andCanada. The Governmentneeds Malaysians livingabroad back in Malaysia.They can contributeimmensely in buildingup Malaysia for the 21stcentury and beyond.The Government needs Malaysians living abroad back in Malaysia. They cancontribute immensely in building up Malaysia for the 21st century and beyond. TheScience, Technology and Innovation Ministry has put together several initiatives toencourage Malaysians living and working abroad to return home.This is to ensure that the skills they have acquired from their years of living andworking abroad are used to enhance domestic technology capability and themarket. Gaps in skills and expertise at home can be filled by Malaysian scientistsand researchers residing abroad. The country requires this for its next stage ofgrowth and development.45