GEORGE TOWN: Basic facilities at Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Tamil (SJKT) in Penang have been progressively upgraded, with each school receiving an annual allocation averaging between RM70,000 and RM80,000, says Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
He said the state government is aware that these funds are still insufficient to meet all needs and is committed to increasing allocations to further support SJKT development.
“I also emphasise that the Penang government’s support for SJKT through annual allocations will continue.
“After nearly 15 years of implementing this programme, we’ve seen year-on-year improvements in basic facilities.
“The exco member in charge (housing and environment), Datuk Seri S. Sundarajoo, insists the allocation is insufficient and urges me to increase it so that Tamil schools can benefit further.”
Chow said this at the closing ceremony of the Penang Tamil Language Teachers International Conference 2024, held at the Penang Campus of the Institute of Teacher Education Malaysia yesterday, Bernama reported.
It is understood that Penang has allocated a total of RM2.39mil annually since 2023 as special assistance to Tamil schools, Tamil school kindergartens, Punjabi schools and the Tamil Schools Committee Special Fund.
Chow highlighted the Tamil language’s rich cultural, historical and traditional heritage has endured for thousands of years.
Therefore, he said the role of Tamil language teachers must be strengthened to ensure this heritage continues to be appreciated, learned and passed on to future generations.
Meanwhile, conference chairman Dr Ponnuduraj Marimuthu said the event aims to equip teachers with diverse teaching skills and build a strong foundation for Tamil language education.
The conference was organised by the Penang Tamil Language Teachers Association in collaboration with the Penang Education Department for the first time.
The two-day conference was attended by 500 participants from across the state as well as international participants from Singapore, Mauritius, New Zealand, India and Sri Lanka, who joined online.
