In a New Year’s message on her Facebook page, Fadhlina said the education ministry was adamant that every student across the country has an equal right to education.

Currently, only primary-level schooling is compulsory in Malaysia.

“The ministry is very concerned about education problems, especially the dropout issue among students,” she said.

“The ministry is always looking for a solution to achieve a zero dropout rate.”

She hoped to see schools free from issues such as sexual harassment, bullying, extremism and gangsterism.

She said the ministry also intended to improve its channels of communication with schools and wanted to play a bigger role in the development of manners, morals and integrity among students.

Fadhlina said that among the ministry’s other priorities were ensuring teachers’ welfare, improving digital education capabilities in schools, and renovating and upgrading rural schools, especially in Sabah and Sarawak.

While Fadhlina did not give any figures as to the number of students who had dropped out in 2021, Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia honorary secretary Tunku Munawirah Putra put the number at more than 40,000 in 2012.

Citing data from the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS) and the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, Tunku Munawirah said the dropout incidence was worse at the start of the millennium, with over 50,000 not proceeding beyond primary school.

The IDEAS report noted that the main reasons for dropping out had been a lack of interest in school, the inability to afford fees and poor academic performance. Most dropout cases are children from the low-income group in both rural and urban areas.