Mendaki Educational Loans for Post-graduate Programmes

15 Mr Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Manap asked the Minister for Communications and Information and Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs (a) whether MENDAKI offers educational loans for postgraduate programmes; (b) if no, what is the reason for not providing so; and (c) how many requests or appeals MENDAKI has received for such educational loans in the past five years.

Assoc Prof Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: From 2011 to 2014, the Council on Education for Muslim Children (MENDAKI) offered interest-free study loans to Muslim students pursuing postgraduate programmes. During this period, MENDAKI received 78 applications for such loans. However, this initiative was discontinued from 2015 to focus MENDAKI's resources and support for Muslim students pursuing first-time degrees and diplomas.