No hike in IPT fees - Noraini

NILAI: The Higher Education Ministry (MOHE) has confirmed that there will be no fee hike for students in Higher Education Institutions (IPT).

Its minister Datuk Seri Dr Noraini Ahmad said MOHE had also requested the universities not to impose fees on other activities because most students were not present at the campus during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"From the beginning, we had informed that there would be no increase in the fees and the ministry had requested the universities not to charge students for other activities.

"But it depends on the respective universities because they have autonomy regarding tuition fees. I learned that some universities provide discounts," she told reporters after visiting the Mega Vaccination Centre (PPV) at Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM) here.

Media reported that a non-governmental organisation had proposed for MOHE to review IPT fees following the COVID-19 outbreak.

In another development, Noraini said 30 per cent of IPT lecturers nationwide had been vaccinated.

She also welcomed the Ministry of Health (MOH) effort to provide vaccine shots to all IPT students besides medical students during the third phase of the National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme.

Noraini said some of the lists of students' and lecturers' names had already been submitted to COVID-19 Immunisation Task Force (CITF).

"Lecturers in the high-risk group had gotten their vaccines especially those in medical and dentistry faculties. Priority is now on students who are on campus due to not having internet access (at home) for online lessons, and final year students," she said.

-- BERNAMA