Amount of Government Funds Extended to MENDAKI for Tertiary Tuition Fee Subsidy Scheme and Amount Not Disbursed
Ministry of Social and Family DevelopmentSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the government funding and utilization of the Tertiary Tuition Fee Subsidy (TTFS) scheme for Malay students as raised by Mr Leong Mun Wai. Minister for Social and Family Development and Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Masagos Zulkifli B M M stated that approximately $65 million was disbursed annually between 2020 and 2023. Over 9,000 students, or more than two-thirds of Malay tertiary students, received the subsidy annually, with most receiving full tuition fee waivers. Undisbursed funds are channeled into the Education Development Fund to support broader academic progress, benefiting over 90,000 individuals in 2023. The Minister added that supplementary aid from the Ministry of Education and institutions ensures no student is denied higher education.
Transcript
91 Mr Leong Mun Wai asked the Minister for Social and Family Development and Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs for each year since 2020 (a) what is the amount of funds granted by the Government to Yayasan MENDAKI (MENDAKI) for the Tertiary Tuition Fee Subsidy (TTFS) scheme; (b) what percentage of the funds granted to MENDAKI are not disbursed; (c) what percentage of Malay students in tertiary institutions have benefited from the TTFS scheme; and (d) what is the median percentage of tuition fees waived for each student.
Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: The Government is committed to ensuring that Malay students in financially challenged families have access to higher education. No Malay student will be denied a tertiary education because of financial difficulties.
The Tertiary Tuition Fee Subsidy (TTFS) scheme subsidises the tuition fees of eligible Malay students at local institutes of higher learning (IHLs), such as the polytechnics and universities, with students from lower-income households receiving higher subsidies.
From 2020 to 2023, the Government disbursed about $65 million annually to MENDAKI for the TTFS scheme with more than two out of three Malay students, or more than 9,000 Malay students in total, in local IHLs, receiving TTFS each year. Most of these students received the TTFS subsidy for the full amount of their tuition fees. Any undisbursed TTFS funds are channelled to MENDAKI’s Education Development Fund (EDF) to support educational assistance schemes and programmes to advance the academic progress of Malay students across different levels. In 2023, more than 90,000 beneficiaries benefited from MENDAKI’s various programmes.
Beyond TTFS, MENDAKI and the Ministry of Education, including the IHLs, also offer students other financial assistance schemes and study loan schemes to defray their education costs.