Malaysia Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has directed the Ministry of Human Resources (Kesuma) to immediately process the first 15,000 foreign worker applications as the government moves to address labour shortages across key industries.
Communications Minister and Unity Government spokesperson Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil said the move was intended to meet workforce demand in affected sectors and support economic activity.
“This is to fulfil the labour needs of the sectors concerned and, in turn, support economic activity in the country,” Fahmi said at a press conference following the Cabinet meeting on August 5.
The directive comes as Malaysia seeks to streamline the management and recruitment of foreign workers amid continued labour demand across several industries.
The latest move follows the government’s decision to place the One-Stop Centre (OSC) for Foreign Worker Management under the full responsibility of Kesuma.
Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri R. Ramanan previously announced that the ministry had assumed full responsibility for managing the centre with immediate effect following a Cabinet decision on July 1.
The move is aimed at strengthening governance around foreign worker recruitment while allowing businesses to meet their workforce requirements more efficiently and systematically.
The decision was made during the first 2026 Cabinet Committee on Foreign Workers meeting on June 30, which approved the transfer of the OSC to Kesuma.
With the Prime Minister now ordering the immediate processing of the first 15,000 applications, the government is seeking to accelerate the flow of foreign workers into sectors facing shortages while maintaining centralised oversight of recruitment.
The development comes as Malaysia continues to balance employers’ demand for additional manpower with efforts to improve governance and management of foreign worker recruitment.