Sabah spends over RM1.3 billion on education, says Arifin
by The Borneo Post · Borneo Post OnlineKOTA KINABALU (Sept 9): The Sabah Government has spent more than RM1.3 billion in the last four years to support education and human capital development, said Science, Technology and Innovation Minister cum State Education Exco Datuk Dr Arifin Arif.
He said the huge allocation showed the government’s commitment to ensuring that no Sabahan is denied the opportunity to pursue higher education because of financial constraints.
“This is part of our Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) agenda to build quality human capital. We aim to provide help from matriculation right up to PhD level,” he said after presenting the educational assistance to Sabahan students pursuing their PhD and Masters.
Among the major schemes are the State Education Fund (TPNS), launched in June 2022, and the Sabah State Scholarship (BKNS).
Other initiatives include SENTOSA: a one-off RM300 cash aid for in-state students (20,000 recipients, RM6 million), GRS-SUBFLY: RM600 flight subsidy for students studying in the peninsula, Sarawak and Labuan (allocation over RM10 million), BUDI: RM20 million to help 10,000 students with their registration fees, BAIK: assistance for computer purchase, BAKTI: RM8 million to help 40,000 students sitting for public examinations, BISTARI: state education savings incentive, BAGUS: aid for Parent-Teacher Association activities, BISBAH: support for Sabah schools, BALKIS: small school maintenance assistance, BANTU: special education aid, AKSA: Sabah Education Excellence Awards, SEMESTA: support for the Sabah Student Secretariat in Malaysia and SUKSES: a new programme providing RM3,000 per school for activities and essential needs.
Dr Arifin said all aid programmes, including BKNS, TPNS, Yayasan Sabah and MUIS — have been streamlined under the Sabah Education Sponsorship Portal (PTPS) so that students can apply through one platform.
“We want to make it easy for students and parents. There is no reason for our children not to pursue higher studies when so many forms of assistance are available,” he stressed.
Dr Arifin urged students to take advantage of the assistance.
“I encourage all students in Sabah to apply for the aid. We have invested heavily because we want to see more Sabahans succeed in their chosen fields. When they graduate, they can contribute back to the state,” he said.
He added that the first batch of students who started under the SMJ government in 2020 are now graduating and are considered the “alumni of SMJ”.