KULAI: The National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) has allocated RM210mil under the PTPTN eKasih Children’s Scholarship (PTPTN BAeK), benefiting 10,000 students from poor and hardcore-poor families.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir (pic) said the allocation is a significant increase from the RM120mil announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim under Budget 2026 last October, which was expected to benefit 5,800 recipients.
“Under the latest announcement in the Malaysia Higher Education Plan 2026-2035, the number of beneficiaries under this free education initiative has been increased from 5,800 to 10,000 students from low-income families,” he said after presenting PTPTN BAeK awards to two recipients in Johor.
Also present were PTPTN chairman Datuk Seri Norliza Abdul Rahim, chief executive Ahmad Dasuki Abdul Majid and Johor PTPTN state office director Mazni Ruslan, Bernama reported.
Zambry said eligible recipients must be registered in the eKasih database and enrolled full-time in diploma or bachelor’s degree programmes at public higher education institutions from Jan 1, 2026.
He also urged public higher education institutions to inform PTPTN of students who may qualify for the scholarship.
Meanwhile, Norliza said that as of May 31, the scholarship had benefited 402 students nationwide, involving RM8.79mil in allocations since its introduction this year.
The scholarship is open to Malaysian students aged 25 and below who are enrolled in PTPTN-registered courses, have an active Simpan SSPN account, no outstanding loan arrears, and at least one semester remaining in their studies.
Recipients will receive RM4,750 annually for diploma studies, RM6,180 for bachelor’s degree (arts) programmes and RM6,650 for bachelor’s degree (science) programmes.
Norliza said students must first apply for a PTPTN loan through the myPTPTN web application. The loan will be approved first to ensure they can continue their studies before being considered for the scholarship if they meet the eligibility requirements.
