School Safety A Top Priority In Budget 2026, Says Fadhlina

PUTRAJAYA, Sept 29 (Bernama) -- School safety is among the key areas that will be prioritised by the Ministry of Education (MOE) in the Budget 2026, which is scheduled to be tabled on Oct 10 in the Dewan Rakyat.

Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the ministry’s other areas of focus include the development of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), anti-bullying support initiatives, digital and technology-related matters, preparations for the Curriculum 2027 and a new education development plan.

"There are several important matters, including TVET, which we will focus on more specifically, in the context of looking at the current national priorities, needs, and direction.

"Overall, our presentation, submissions, and requests for the Budget 2026 are very comprehensive and certainly have specific targets to continue enhancing and elevating the quality of the nation's education," she told the media after launching the National Reading Decade (DMK) 2025 here today.

The MOE was allocated RM64.1 billion in last year’s budget.

In a separate development, Fadhlina reported that over 700 of the 10,000 schools nationwide have been audited so far to ensure their safety standards are at an optimal level.

"We still have a long way to go, but we are seeing very good progress. We will announce the audit’s preliminary findings in the near future," she said.

This follows earlier media reports that the MOE had directed the Head of the Inspectorate of Schools to mobilise all its officers to conduct school safety audits, with weekly reports. 

The measure is one of several initiatives taken to strengthen safety aspects in schools and school hostels.

Meanwhile, in a statement today, the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) said that the DMK 2025 is part of a long-term national initiative, which began in 2021 and will run until 2030.

It aims to foster a reading culture within society and propel Malaysia into the top 20-ranked reading nations by 2030 under the #MalaysiaMembaca (#MalaysiaReads) aspiration.

“The implementation of DMK is a collaborative effort, involving various ministries, government agencies, the private sector, non-governmental organisations and the wider community.

"Through this initiative, the government aims to establish Malaysia as a reading nation and cultivate a world-class, knowledgeable society," the statement read.

The DBP added that the DMK also targets a significant increase in the number of books read by Malaysians, raising the average from 15 to 50 titles per year by 2030.

-- BERNAMA