‘Stateless kids can study here’
JOHOR BARU: The Education Ministry will make it easier for stateless children to get education by enrolling them at government primary schools here, says deputy minister Teo Nie Ching.
She said most primary school pupils were registered through the ministry’s “Ziarah Cakna” programme that was introduced to all parents and children early this year.
“The remaining 2% are stateless children, who are living in poverty and their parents lack informa-tion on the educational needs of their children.
“The ministry has already started the process to register stateless children at government schools,” she said after launching a day-care centre at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) here yesterday.
Teo also stressed that under the Education Act 1996, it was compulsory for parents or guardians to send their children to primary schools.
On another matter, she said the ministry encouraged privately-run preschools to register with the Education Department.
Currently, some 47% of chil-dren were registered at government-owned preschools while rest go to private institutions, she said.
“We hope to get as many private preschools to register with the department for them to use our national co-curriculum,” she said at the press conference.
Source : TheStar
