Petronas today signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Sarawak Workforce Development Unit (WDU) to collaborate in promoting an interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics(STEM) among local students over the next three years.

State secretary Tan Sri Morshidi Abdul Ghani signed on behalf of the state government while Petronas senior vice president for Group Human Resources Management Datuk Raiha Azni Abdul Rahman signed for the national oil corporation.

Chief Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg witnessed the MoU signing after the official opening of the Sarawak Career and Training (SCaT) Fair 2017 here.

Petronas, in a statement, said the collaboration aimed to enhance the students' interest in the respective areas through new thinking approaches, strengthening of curriculum and inculcating higher thinking skills.

"The STEM initiative will equip them with the necessary skills to meet the challenges in science and technology faced by the state and to increase the number of qualified STEM graduates.

"This is the third year that Petronas has participated in the state government driven SCaT fair," it said.

During the three-day fair, which ends tomorrow, Petronas showcased its various educational facilities and programmes.

They included Universiti Teknoloji Petronas (UTP), Institut Teknoloji Petroleum Petronas (INSTEP), Akademi Laut Malaysia (ALAM) and Petrosains Science Discovery Centre.

--BERNAMA