PUTRAJAYA — The number of graduates increased to 5.98 million in 2024, with the unemployment rate declining to 3.2 per cent, in line with strong labour market growth, according to the 2024 Graduate Statistics released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) today.

Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the positive economic and labour market environment throughout 2024 contributed to the increase, with graduates accounting for 22.3 per cent of the working-age population aged 15 years and above.

“Of this total, 5.14 million were active in the labour force, resulting in a high Graduate Labour Force Participation Rate (GLFPR) of 86.0 per cent.

“Degree holders accounted for 54.9 per cent (3.28 million persons), while diploma holders represented 45.1 per cent (2.70 million persons).

“Year-on-year, the number of degree graduates in the labour force rose by 5.4 per cent, while diploma holders increased by 3.2 per cent, driven by better job opportunities and lower unemployment rates,” he said in a statement.

In line with the Madani Government’s commitment to strengthening graduate employability, Mohd Uzir said various initiatives have been introduced under Budget 2024, including access to up to RM2 billion from the HRD Corporation levy to finance new graduates’ salaries and the continuation of proven programmes such as the MySTEP Graduate Training and Placement Scheme.

Other initiatives include the Graduate Entrepreneur Academy (PUSh), the e-Latih Programme offering free online courses, the Graduate Apprenticeship Programme, the Graduate Innovation Fund, and the MyNext Graduate Employability Grant (MyNext-GEG) by TalentCorp.