The government will be increasing the Early Schooling Aid (BAP) from RM100 to RM150 for all pupils regardless of the income level of parents next year.

When tabling the 2023 Supply Bill at Dewan Rakyat today, Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said the assistance will be channeled in January 2023 and hoped it would lighten the burden of parents to support schooling children.

"For example, a family with three schoolgoing children, would be eligible to receive RM450 in BAP," he said.

He said RM825 million has been allocated for 2023 BAP which is far bigger than RM450 million provided this year.

Tengku Zafrul stressed that the Education Ministry (KPM) would continue to receive the largest allocation at RM55.6 billion in the Federal Budget in 2023 compared to RM52.6 billion this year.

Apart from that, the government would also be increasing the rate of prepared food under the Supplementary Food Programme (RMT) from RM2.50 to RM3.50 for the Peninsula and RM4 for Sabah , Sarawak and Labuan effiective this month.

He said RM777 million is also provided to benefit more than 800,000 pupils as well as 7,300 food operators and local milk suppliers.

Tengku Zafrul also announced that RM2.3 billion is allocated to provide conducive and safe learning space for school pupils in which RM1.1 billion from the total is provided for the maintenance and repair of schools encompassing national schools, national-type Chinese and Tamil schools and religious schools.

He said RM1.2 billion is set aside to upgrade dilapidated schools especially old wooden buildings for the greater comfort of children in Sabah and Sarawak involving 123 schools in Sabah and 182 schools in Sarawak.

To meet the needs of local residents, he said the government will be building five new schools costing RM430 million next year, namely Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Nabalu, Sabah; SMK Dudong, Sarawak; Sekolah Kebangssan (SK) Paya Dusun, Terengganu and SK Cyberjaya 2 and SMK Denai Alam, Selangor.

-- BERNAMA