Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani, who heads the Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organisation Malaysia, said refugees and stateless people could contribute to their host country’s productivity if they had access to primary and tertiary education.

“Having a clear and comprehensive refugee policy and management will definitely benefit both refugees and the host country.

“This can be done through many ways, including partnership and sponsorship programmes with the educational institutions both in Malaysia or outside Malaysia,” he said in a statement.

He said such programmes would not be a burden and would also alleviate poverty among refugees and stateless people.

Zafar welcomed the comments by Negeri Sembilan’s Yang di-Pertuan Besar, Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir, who on Monday urged the government to review its policy which denied children who are refugees or stateless access to formal education.

“We agree with Tuanku Muhriz that we need holistic and long-term solutions on this issue,” he said.

He said his organisation was willing to offer its input to the government as there were many factors that had to be considered when granting refugees and stateless people access to formal education.