| Rokiah Mahmud |

THE Ministry of Education (MoE) has set up a committee to manage the School Education Fund, a crowdfunding platform through which members of the public can donate or contribute cash to help schools purchase teaching aids and other operational

necessities.

Minister of Education Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Haji Awang Hamzah bin Haji Sulaiman made note of this at the Legislative Council (LegCo) meeting yesterday.

LegCo member Yang Berhormat Khairunnisa binti Haji Ash’ari’s suggestion to set up a designated school fund to help schools and teachers purchase necessary school equipment or teaching aids.

Such a fund is needed, she reasoned, because many of the teachers usually use their own money to purchase teaching aids.

On Yang Berhormat Khairunnisa’s question on which ministry carries out the coordination of maintenance work at schools shared by the MoE and the Ministry of Religious Affairs (MoRA), the Minister of Education explained, “The coordination is done by the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The MoE provides full cooperation for school maintenance, while simultaneously catering to the administration needs of religious schools using the MoE’s primary schools, such as building extensions.”

Adding his comments to this issue, Minister of Religious Affairs Yang Berhormat Pehin Udana Khatib Dato Paduka Seri Setia Ustaz Haji Awang Badaruddin bin Pengarah Dato Paduka Haji Awang Othman said, “Out of 143 religious schools in the country, only 38 have their own buildings, while the rest are [operating on the premises of] primary schools under the MoE.

“Therefore the MoRA will always continue to cooperate with the MoE in carrying out maintenance at the schools.”