RM500 thousand in Cooperative Trust Fund funds will be channeled for B40 student scholarships starting this year: Ewon

28 January 2024

By Wartawan Nabalu News

KUALA LUMPUR: Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives, Datuk Ewon Benedick, announced that RM500,000 from the Cooperative Trust Fund will be allocated to Angkasa for education scholarships for B40 students starting this year.

The aim of this initiative is to support students, particularly those from the B40 group, who are pursuing higher education.

"As part of the government's commitment and the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Cooperative Development, we have agreed to allocate RM500,000 from the Cooperative Education Trust Fund to Angkasa. This fund will be instrumental in assisting students, especially those from the B40 group, who are pursuing their studies at universities and colleges, beginning this year," Datuk Ewon Benedick explained.

He further added, "We are also considering the University of Keusahawanan Koperasi Malaysia (UKKM) as an institution to benefit from this fund. The purpose of the fund is not only to cover tuition fees but also to provide support for other essential needs, such as the purchase of laptops, that students require."

Ewon made these statements during a press conference after officiating the Yayasan Angkasa Education Funding Student Document Submission Programme and the Outstanding Student Award 2023, held at the Wisma Ungku Aziz Auditorium.

The event was attended by the President of Angkasa and Chairman of Yayasan Angkasa, Datuk Seri Dr. Abdul Fattah Abdullah, as well as the Chief Executive Officer of the Malaysian Cooperative Commission (SKM), Rusli Jaafar.

Datuk Ewon expressed his hope that the fund would benefit a larger number of students, aligning with the government's commitment to prioritize education.

"I also hope that this initiative will encourage more people in our country to join the cooperative movement. It is important to note that one of the requirements to receive education funding from Yayasan Angkasa is that the student or their parents must be members of a cooperative," he emphasized.

During the event, a total of 193 students from various higher education institutes received educational funding from Yayasan Angkasa, amounting to RM2.438 million. These students consisted of 156 full-time undergraduate students and 37 part-time students pursuing Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral degrees.