By Karen Bong
KUCHING, Dec 18: The Sarawak government’s promise of free tertiary education is not mere rhetoric, as the first batch of 4,693 existing university students will continue their studies with tuition fees fully borne by the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government beginning 2026.
Premier of Sarawak Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg said the beneficiaries include students currently in Year Two to Year Four, as well as Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) holders, enrolled at Sarawak-owned institutions.
“These students will pursue their tertiary education at Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak, Curtin University Malaysia, University of Technology Sarawak (UTS), and i-CATS University College, with their tuition fees paid entirely by the GPS government,” he said when launching the Free Tertiary Education Scheme (FTES) at the Raia Hotel and Convention Centre here today.
Abang Johari said the initiative marks a historic moment for Sarawak, as it concretely implements an education policy aimed at ensuring talented Sarawakian students are not denied higher education due to financial constraints.
He cited children from low-income families such as fishermen and farmers who, despite strong academic performance and university offers, were previously unable to proceed due to affordability issues.
“This caused their future to stop. We know very well that many Sarawakian students can perform at higher levels, but financial constraints prevented them from continuing,” he said.
To support FTES, the Sarawak government has allocated RM250 million in 2026, covering 64 courses critical to the new economy, including robotics, cybersecurity, engineering, medicine, finance, law, and psychology.
Abang Johari said the list of programmes will continue to expand, including specialised and interdisciplinary fields such as engineering with management and construction.
“We will add new disciplines, but I leave it to the ministry and the universities to determine them, as long as we can prepare the right workforce for our new economy,” he said.
He added that journalism is also among the areas being considered, stressing the need to strengthen the media profession across print, broadcast, and digital platforms through specialised training.
“Even journalism, we want to offer special courses because our media fraternity needs quality, from newspapers to broadcast and online,” he said.
Deputy Premiers Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas and Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian, Minister of Education, Innovation and Talent Development Dato Sri Roland Sagah Wee Inn, Deputy Minister of Talent Development Datuk Francis Harden Hollis, Minister in the Premier’s Department Dato Sri John Sikie Tayai, Deputy Minister of Transport Datuk Dr Jerip Susil and Sarawak Secretary Datuk Amar Mohamad Abu Bakar Marzuki were among the distinguished guests present. — DayakDaily
