However, he said, the matter is subject to a final decision by the finance ministry.

“So far, we have no plans to continue with it,” he told reporters after the launch of the 2023 national-level academic day and academic month here today.

When tabling the 2023 budget, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is also the finance minister, said the government had agreed to give discounts of up to 20% on PTPTN loan repayments for three months starting March 1.

In addition, the government also agreed to defer repayment for borrowers with a monthly income of RM1,800 and below for a period of six months to ease their financial burden.

Meanwhile, Khaled said the ministry would focus on three areas for the 2024 budget – digitalisation, research and innovation and student housing.

“We are hoping that the government will support our application to implement digitalisation in a bid to make the management of the higher education ecosystem a success.”