Defence minister Khaled Nordin said this initiative would enable serving personnel to obtain diplomas or degrees in various fields, based on their competencies.

“This approach allows every serving member to be assessed based on their talent, knowledge, skills and experience, and have them translated into suitable academic qualifications,” he said during deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s visit to the Mahkota army camp here.

Khaled said two public universities, Universiti Teknologi Mara and Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, had agreed to offer 10 academic programmes tailored for military personnel.

“Among the programmes shortlisted are diplomas in culinary arts, hotel management, and civil engineering,” he said, adding that the ministry would bear the full cost of tuition for these courses.

Meanwhile, Zahid said there are plans to establish a new Mara Junior Science College (MRSM) specifically for children of military personnel.

Zahid said discussions would be held with the defence ministry to identify a suitable location for the new MRSM.

“They could utilise one of the four newly constructed MRSMs which are unused or construct a new facility, which will take more time,” said Zahid.

Zahid said establishing a dedicated MRSM for the children of military personnel is part of Mara’s goal to provide them with specialised educational opportunities.

Mahkota, one of the two state seats in the Kluang parliamentary constituency, has 66,318 eligible voters, comprising 61,397 ordinary voters, 4,510 military personnel and spouses, 401 police personnel and 10 absentee voters living abroad.

The by-election, which will take place on Sept 28, is a straight fight between Barisan Nasional’s Syed Hussien Syed Abdullah and Perikatan Nasional’s Haizan Jaafar.

Early voting is set for Sept 24.