Skill Uplifting in Sabah caused more Brain drain

 Given this fact and reality, what dou think the amount of effort and money spent to uplift the skilled workforce in Sabah? Will not it result in more brain drain as a result of prevalence of poverty resulting in low pay and  certain disruptions of electricity and water in Sabah?

Upskilling a workforce without first establishing reliable basic infrastructure and high-value local jobs creates a classic "push factor" that accelerates brain drain rather than curing it. Investing in human capital while basic utilities are collapsing effectively turns the state into a talent exporter.

Structural Mechanics of the Talent Flight Trap

• The Wage-Qualification Disconnect: Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) findings indicate that over 66% of Sabahans working in Peninsular Malaysia choose not to return due to severe wage mismatches. With Sabah’s median wage sitting roughly 17% below the national average and youth unemployment near 13%, educating locals without a matching high-wage job market guarantees out-migration.
• Utility Outages Block High-Value Employers: High-paying industries—such as semiconductor assembly, data centers, precision manufacturing, and advanced oleochemicals—require 99.9% power grid stability and continuous industrial water supply. Because zero power reserves and unannounced water blackouts prevent these firms from setting up in Sabah, upskilled graduates have no local high-tech employers to hire them.
• Portability of Talent: Vocational and higher-education qualifications make workers globally mobile. A certified engineer, data technician, or master welder will not tolerate multi-month water disruptions and daily load-shedding when their skills command 30% to 100% higher real wages in Selangor, Singapore, or Kalimantan.
• Subsidizing Outside Economies: When Sabah spends state or federal development funds training local youth, but those workers immediately relocate to Peninsular Malaysia, the income tax (PIT) generated by their higher earnings is captured by LHDN in the West. Sabah absorbs the cost of education while external economies capture the productivity and tax revenues.

The Policy Paradox

Human capital development cannot succeed in an infrastructure vacuum. Spending money on workforce uplift while basic road, power, and water grids remain severely underfunded simply subsidizes the human resource pipeline for other regions, solidifying Sabah's status as a low-cost resource colony that exports both its raw materials and its best minds.