KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 27 — An internship programme to pair youths to company chief executives and chairmen similar to the ministerial Perdana Fellows Programme is currently in the works, Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman said today.

Speaking at a press conference after addressing the Youth Economic Forum 2018, Syed Saddiq said the programme which is expected to take place next year aims to ensure youths have the opportunity to be mentored by industry captains.

"I have met and sent letters to many CEOs and chairmen of the biggest and most successful companies in Malaysia. I’ve received positive input and responses and [the CEOs] are interested in nation building and to groom our next generation of leaders.

"We will train the cream of the crop and the best of the best. I want to ensure that we don’t just develop the youths in politics, but also grant them the opportunity in big companies so they can be the best corporate figures in the future,” said Syed Saddiq, who is also a Perdana Fellowship alumni.

Under the Perdana Fellowship, youths are paired with Cabinet ministers for a mentor-internship programme for a period of three months. The minister envisions a similar programme, but has yet to finalise the timeframe for the internship.

When asked what is the difference between his idea and a normal internship, Syed Saddiq said that normal internship does not always allow close mentoring by the company’s top bosses.

He also gave assurances that there will be no political interference in the process and the selection will only be based on merit, with the exception for those coming from the bottom 40 per cent (B40) background.

"The selection process will be fair. I don’t want any political interference. It will be like the selection for Perdana fellows — it will be merit based. The only exception will be the specific B40 segment.

"We won’t forget them and we will give them an accelerator process so they have the opportunity too,” he said.