Sarawak’s Free Tertiary Education Scheme to produce competitive workforceaims to produce a highly educated workforce to drive the state towards a high-income economy, covering 64 degree programmes.
KUCHING: Sarawak’s Free Tertiary Education Scheme aims to produce a highly educated and competitive workforce capable of driving the state towards a high-income economy.
Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg said the government places strong emphasis on nurturing knowledgeable and highly skilled human capital.
A total of 64 bachelor’s degree programmes have been identified for inclusion under the scheme, involving 10,000 students at an estimated cost of RM250 million.
The scheme is open to all eligible students regardless of family income background, reflecting the government’s commitment to providing education as a basic need.
Four Sarawak-owned higher education institutions will be involved in the FTES.
These are Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus, Curtin University Malaysia, University of Technology Sarawak and i-CATS University College.
The FTES not only covers tuition fees but also provides monthly allowances to eligible recipients to help meet basic living expenses.
The scheme focuses on undergraduate degree programmes in STEM fields, as well as medicine, law, accounting, finance and psychology.
This focus aligns with Sarawak’s talent development needs.
Meanwhile, Abang Johari said the state government is also committed to strengthening secondary education.
This will be done through the establishment of the Yayasan Sarawak International Secondary School.
“This initiative is a major step in the state’s education strategy, offering the Cambridge curriculum and aligning Sarawak’s education system with international standards,” he said.
