By Vincent D’Silva

JOHOR BAHRU: A routine evening meeting of the Rotary Club of Johor Bahru (RCJB) at the Amari Hotel turned into a thought-provoking deep dive into Asia’s education challenges when Keith Thong, Chairman of the Malaysian Book Industry Chamber and President of the Malaysian Booksellers Association, delivered a wide-ranging address on human capital development, artificial intelligence, and the future of learning.

Thong, who is also Managing Director of University Bookstore Malaysia, captivated members with candid stories from his decades in the regional education sector—spanning Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, China, and the Philippines. His message was clear: feeding the poor is necessary, but feeding minds is transformative.

“Food sustains people for a day. Education sustains them for life,” Thong told attendees. “If we truly want to uplift communities, we must go beyond handouts and invest in long-term human capital.”

Thong began with a personal reflection on his career in the book industry, which dates back to 1958 when University Bookstore Malaysia was founded.

“We once had more than 15 campus bookstores—UM, UKM, Taylor’s, Sunway, you name it,” he said. “But the business model collapsed. Piracy and digitalisation changed everything.”

Today, the company has pivoted into providing textbooks for international schools and training educators to use artificial intelligence responsibly.

“AI can empower teachers, or it can let students bully teachers,” Thong quipped, recalling a rural school where students openly admitted using AI to overwhelm teachers with assignments. “We need to help educators keep up, or they will retreat.”

Thong emphasised that education technology has become the fastest way to bridge gaps between the rich and poor—particularly in remote and underserved communities.

“With technology, the cost of scaling learning becomes almost negligible,” he explained. “If a school cannot afford expensive tools, we negotiate. Many companies will give free access to the poor once they know it’s for charity.”

He described initiatives across Southeast Asia where he has helped governments, religious institutions, and universities adopt AI-enabled English learning systems and upskilling programmes.

Examples included:

• Indonesia’s religious authorities seeking AI tools to motivate youth to learn English.
• The Catholic Church in the Philippines, where English proficiency still determines global employability.
• Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, which quadrupled its education budget by combining government, corporate, and donor contributions.

“Bangkok expects every school to compete with Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Saigon,” Thong noted. “They told me, ‘Give us the best—you take care of Malaysia, we take care of Thailand.’”

Turning to local concerns, Thong highlighted Malaysia’s disappointing performance in the recent PISA rankings.
“Malaysia lost to Vietnam. Nobody expected that,” he warned. “We announce big education plans but rarely follow through. Billions disappear. The world notices.”

He pointed to AI-driven English tests his organisation provides—at 10% of the cost of IELTS—now officially recognised in Malaysia and used to support village teachers who cannot afford expensive exams.

Through colourful anecdotes—including taxi drivers in Medan who struggle due to lack of English skills and AI—Thong illustrated how education directly shapes social mobility.

One driver told him: “I regret not learning when I was young. Now I cannot even use Google Maps.”

Another said he waited three hours for customers because app companies took 60% of earnings.

“Without education, you are always at the mercy of someone else,” Thong said. “With AI coming, even taxi and delivery jobs will vanish.”

He added that companies increasingly demand international English standards—even for TikTok influencers.

“Before you go live on TikTok, AI will assess your English level. That determines whether brands will work with you,” he explained.

Thong described donor-driven efforts across Asia that uplift communities through literacy, STEM education, and AI training.

He highlighted Singapore’s large investment in early childhood learning and Thailand’s effective fundraising model based on community karma and corporate responsibility.

Back home, he encouraged Malaysian communities to adopt smaller, grassroots initiatives:

“Forget waiting for government. Start with Johor. Start with one town,” he urged. “People who love this land can make more impact than any politician.”

The Q&A session that followed saw lively engagement from Rotary members, with questions ranging from AI ethics to youth employability and the future of university bookstores.

Several participants were struck by Thong’s frank assessments of Malaysia’s education challenges.

One Rotarian commented privately after the talk: “Keith didn’t just give a speech—he gave us a wake-up call.”

Concluding the session, Thong called on civil society, Rotary clubs, NGOs, and educators to collaborate on long-term human capital development in Johor.

“If you champion STEM, English, AI, or entrepreneurship, let’s work together,” he urged. “We want to serve with anyone who believes education can transform lives.”

The talk ended with warm applause—along with much reflection among attendees.