1,020 rundown schools in Sarawak; 198 repaired and renovated

A TOTAL of 198 school repair and upgrading projects have been completed, while another 309 schools are at various stages of implementation.

Education, Innovation, and Talent Development Minister Datuk Seri Roland Sagah Wee Inn said that Sarawak recorded a total of 1,020 dilapidated schools under different categories.

He asserted that 461 out of 1,020 schools were categorised as the “worst lot” by the Education Ministry (MoE) in 2019.

“In 2019, MoE redefined the dilapidated buildings category on a scale from 1 to 7 – with scales 6 and 7 being the worst lot  – upon verification by technical personnel from the Sarawak Education Department (JPNS) and Public Works Department (PWD).

“From this redefined category, there are 461 currently under scales 6 and 7. These categories are given top priority for repair and upgrading works,” he added.

He said this during his ministry’s winding-up speech in the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) today.

On the same note, the Tarat assemblyman assured that the requests from Serembu, Katibas and Meluan assemblymen to build new schools would be considered.

“The requests for new secondary schools, merging of under-enrolment primary schools and establishing Form 6 at SMK Julau No. 1 or SMK Julau No. 2 will be studied and recommended to JPNS for further decision by MoE,” he said.

Additionally, Sagah, when acknowledging the need for more vocational colleges, asserted that the number of applicants to these schools far exceeds their capacities.

As such, he said his ministry floated the idea for the MoE to utilise existing state-owned technical institutions to provide vocational training.

This approach of using existing facilities and resources, he said, would be faster to implement as compared to establishing a new vocational college, which could take up to five years.

The benefit of vocational colleges, he pointed out, is that students who completed Form 3 before enrolling will still be part of the school system, where the ministry can still offer career guidance and support.

“On the other hand, once they leave the school system after Form 5, it would be less likely for them to enrol in vocational or technical courses.

“This will translate to the insufficient number of skilled talents required to meet the industry’s needs.

“We hope that the federal government will pay due attention to our views and requests and duly consider our proposal,” he said.