Sabah and Sarawak affairs minister Mustapha Sakmud said the assistance, which targets students from poor and hardcore poor households, was still under discussion and expected to be implemented this year, Bernama reported.

“We will determine the most suitable approach as part of our efforts to eradicate hardcore poverty, particularly among those most in need,” he was quoted as saying after officiating the 2026 Sarawak Early Schooling Assistance distribution at SMK Petra Jaya here today.

Mustapha also said the government was exploring collaboration with the National Higher Education Fund Corporation to establish National Education Savings Scheme accounts for eligible secondary school students.

He said the initiative was aimed at helping students from low-income families prepare for tertiary education.

Earlier in his speech, Mustapha said RM370,000 had been allocated under the Sejahtera Madani initiative for Phase One Education Assistance, to benefit 740 households registered as poor in the eKasih system.

He said the assistance would benefit 370 households each at the primary and secondary school levels, as part of efforts to meet the educational needs of low-income families.

“For primary school recipients, assistance is provided in the form of RM500 vouchers for the purchase of school uniforms and supplies. Assistance for secondary school students, which is still in the implementation phase, is also planned at the same value,” he said.

Mustapha said the government was also channelling about RM62 million in 2026 BAP to 413,380 students across 1,460 schools in Sarawak.

He said the RM150 BAP allocation per student was aimed at easing the financial burden of parents at the start of the school term while ensuring the continuity of children’s education in the state.