PM announces living allowance increase for Mara-sponsored students

 

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob today announced that the living allowance (ESH) for local and overseas students sponsored by Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara) will be increased with immediate effect.

He said the new living allowance rate for local students has been increased from a minimum of RM650 to a maximum of RM950 per month, from diploma to professional and doctoral degree levels.

As for students studying overseas, the minimum has been increased to RM1,380 per month and the maximum to RM7,600 per month, from the bachelor’s degree level up to the professional and doctoral levels.

"The living allowance for existing and new students studying in the country has been adjusted according to the increase in costs and inflation, as well as their needs.

"The increase in allowance will involve a total of 62,998 Mara-sponsored students," he said in his speech at the “Aspirasi Kecemerlangan Keluarga Malaysia” programme, which was attended by nearly 3,000 students, while thousands of others followed the event online.

There are currently 4,149 Mara-sponsored students studying abroad, and of that number, 1,049 students are studying at 24 universities in the list of the world's top 50 universities, said Ismail Sabri.

To support learning

He said 58,849 Mara-sponsored students were currently studying at local public universities or selected private educational institutions, with four to six-star ratings in the Rating System for Malaysian Higher Education Institutions (Setara).

Ismail Sabri said the living allowance was used towards accommodation, food, transportation and daily needs.

He said the existing allowance rate had been used for over 13 years and there was a need to review it following the increase in the cost of living in the country over the past 10 years, the pandemic and other issues.

"This has impacted students’ cost of living and they have to plan their expenses well to ensure that their learning journey is not affected," he added.

 - Bernama