By Dayangku Hidayatul
KUCHING, Jan 29: Sarawak students receiving scholarships in universities are not eligible for Free Tertiary Education Scheme (FTES), says Minister of Education, Innovation and Talent Development (MEITD) Dato Sri Roland Sagah Wee Inn.
He clarified this with the press after officiating the closing ceremony of the Asia Pacific Aerospace Conference and Exhibition (APACE) 2026 held at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) today.
“If they are under scholarship, we don’t give (FTES) because we don’t want them to overlap,” he told reporters.
On aerospace, he said that education and skills training are a priority before full development in the industry begins.
Sagah further said while universities play a key role in producing aerospace graduates, academic knowledge alone is insufficient.
According to him, the industry requires not only engineers and researchers, but also skilled technicians who are trained through institutions that focus on hands-on and technical competencies.
He expressed his confidence that Sarawak is on track towards the timeline of 2030, with several institutions has begun producing aerospace-related graduates.
“As early as February, we will have our Maintenance, Repair and Operations (MRO) graduates, specifically for aircraft and aviation maintenance,” he said.
He also said there are 28 students who are currently enrolling in Aerospace Engineering programme at i-CATS University College under FTES.
Overall, he said approximately 5,000 students across all institutions are currently benefitting from the scheme.
When asked if there are any students who had rejected the FTES offer, he replied in negative.
“So far we have not heard any report of anybody rejecting the offer. If it was me, I would totally take it,” he pointed out. — DayakDaily
