Raising education quality remains focus of Sabah Foundation – director
KOTA KINABALU: Over the past five decades, Sabah Foundation has endlessly pursued its responsibilities in achieving the main objectives of its establishment in raising the people’s standard of living by uplifting the quality of education and educational facilities for Sabahans, said the Director of Sabah Foundation cum Chief Executive Officer of ICSB, Haji Jamalul Kiram bin Datuk Haji Mohd. Zakaria.
Jamalul Kiram was speaking during the presentation of Sabah Foundation One-Off Educational Assistance at Auditorium Tun Ahmad Raffae, Menara Tun Mustapha, here yesterday.
The assistance was presented by Chief Minister cum Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Sabah Foundation, Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Mohd. Shafie bin Haji Apdal.
Since the first batch of students who were sent to Peninsular Malaysia back in 1968, Sabah Foundation has been continuously empowering its education development agenda for the people of this State.
Educational facilities such as textbooks, hostels, daily meals, school clothing, mentorship classes, pocket money and aeroplane fare were provided to sponsored students at that time.
In retrospect, the Sabah Foundation is highly regarded as an organisation that pioneered the scheme for the distribution of school dairy milk, uniforms and shoes for students, especially those in rural areas which were later extended to needy urban students.
In terms of educational sponsorship, since 1968 to date, a total of 18,207 students have benefited from the Sabah Foundation Scholarship for Higher Education totalling RM235.3 million.
For the Sabah State Scholarship Award of Excellence, a total of 513 students benefited from the awards amounting to RM89.4 million.
Additionally, 9,997 students benefited from the Yayasan Sabah Educational Loan at a cost of RM221.78 million.
Meanwhile, a total of 71,485 students hve received Secondary Scholarship sponsorship at a cost of RM111.4 million. In total, the Sabah Foundation has sponsored a total of 100,202 students with an expenditure of RM657.9 million.
As part of the new State Government’s commitment to education, Sabah Foundation has announced an extra RM10 million a year in the funding of educational assistance for firsttime students pursuing their tertiary education.
The additional educational funding, which was described as being as timely and much needed by Jamalul Kiram, would be rolled out in separate phases in a year.
“This grant is specially given to newly registered students for 2018 including recipients present today,” he said.
Jamalul Kiram said the One-Off Educational Assistance was divided into two categories whereby firstyear diploma and degree students enrolling in institutions of higher learning in Sabah would receive a one-off payment of RM1,000 per student while students entering institutions of higher learning in Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia would receive RM2,000 each.