He said menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi proposed the matter to education minister Fadhlina Sidek at the end of last year.

Therefore, he said, the announcement about the school’s construction would be the best “gift” for parents with autistic children, especially in Johor, who hope their children can continue developing learning and self-care skills.

The details on the school project will be announced by the education ministry,” he said when contacted by Bernama.

When tabling the 2025 budget on Oct 18, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced the construction of two new schools for students with special needs, one in Tuaran, Sabah and the other in Johor Bahru, Johor, involving a cost of RM300 million.

The school in Johor Bahru will be the first to focus on education for autistic children.

Meanwhile, the clinical director of a centre for special children, IndeBrain Occupational Therapy Solutions, Siti Noraisikin Jazuli said the construction of the school is necessary considering the increase in the number of autistic children in the country.

Citing statistics from the social welfare department (JKM), she said, the number of autistic children showed a drastic increase in the last 10 years, with 53,323 people diagnosed with autism last year.

Siti Noraisikin said that one of the main concerns of parents is the lack of facilities for special children at school, especially in the Integrated Special Education Programme (PPKI).

“In Malaysia, there are early intervention centres to meet the needs of these special children, especially children with autism. However, the main issue often involves finances because the cost of sending children to private centres is relatively high compared with sending them to mainstream schools.

“Therefore, we welcome the budget announcement to provide facilities and give priority to children with special needs,” she said.