PM: BN CHAMPIONS EDUCATION

Govt has brought social mobility to Malaysians, says Najib

EDUCATION and its role in transforming the lives of people is the priority of the Barisan Nasional government, that will continue to be championed for the sake of all, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Describing the people of this country as fortunate, he said the government had implemented many policies to enable people to improve their families’ standard of living within one generation.

“For instance, through efforts, education, assistance and the platforms that the government has provided, the son of a fisherman can today be a doctor, engineer and all sorts of jobs that can raise the standard of living of his family to a higher level.

“This is the social mobility that the BN government has brought to the people of Malaysia, regardless of race, and we will continue to provide and champion it for the good of all,” he said on his blog www.najibrazak.com yesterday.

He expressed his pride in the success of local universities in attaining better ratings in global rankings.

Five local research universities (RU) created history after they were listed in the top 300 universities in the world, according to a list drawn up by the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Ranking 20172018.

These universities include Universiti Malaya (UM); Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM); Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM); Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM).

“UM rose 19 ranks to 114th place, which means it is not far from breaking into the 100th best in the world, while UKM rose 72 places, the best achievement this year.

“Similarly, UPM, USM and UTM all rose in rankings,” he said.

Five universities, — UPM, UTM, USM, UKM and Universiti Teknologi Petronas — were in the list of 200 best universities in the Asia-Pacific region 2017, as listed by the Times Higher Education.

He said in the list of Universitas 21, a global network of research universities for the 21st century, the Malaysian higher education system was placed 25th best in the world, rising 11 places in six years.

“This is part of the many successes attained by our universities, an achievement which not only makes us proud, but also proves that the national education system is at a positive stage.

“Even so, I am convinced we are capable of achieving more, and with the continued efforts of all parties, national education will continue to grow to a higher level, God willing,” he said. Bernama